


Book One (Sixth Year)

by CheezLord12



Series: Andromeda Black and the Two Years That Changed Her Life [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Friendship, Romance, Sometimes Angsty, sometimes humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:07:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 31,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28434369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CheezLord12/pseuds/CheezLord12
Summary: Andromeda Black knows what she is: a pureblood. And that, of course means she is superior to others, especially muggle-borns who dare carry a wand.This is the story of how she finds out she’s not.
Relationships: Andromeda Black Tonks/Ted Tonks, Bellatrix Black Lestrange & Narcissa Black Malfoy & Andromeda Black Tonks, Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Series: Andromeda Black and the Two Years That Changed Her Life [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2082702
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	1. Back to Hogwarts

Andromeda Black knew that she looked like her elder sister. Everyone always reminded her.  _ You look just like Bellatrix!  _ they would say.  _ Are you sure you're not twins? _ Then they'd laugh, like she hadn't heard that line a million times before, amazed with their own ingenuity. Normally, Andromeda liked how much she looked like Bellatrix, but lately she'd started to feel... different about it.

She still admired her sister a great deal, even if she did get a little overly passionate at times. Her mother had assured Andromeda that Bellatrix would grow out of it, though it looked to Andromeda like her temper only got worse as she passed her time at Hogwarts, a year ahead of Andromeda. By the time Narcissa entered school, Bellatrix had quite the reputation for being a bully.

Still, Andromeda was never offended or disgusted when people compared her to her sister. Until now.

What had changed?

The question plagued her all through the night, as she tossed and turned in her bed. She knew she should've been enjoying her final night at home before she would have to share a dorm with five other girls once again. She didn't dislike her dormmates, but it was nice to have privacy.

When she finally fell asleep, Andromeda's sleep was taken over by a vision of Bellatrix laughing as she cast confuding charm on a rabbit, watching it run into a tree over and over. Then, Bellatrix looked up, shaking her curly hair away from her face, and Andromeda realized that it was not her sister's face, but her own.

She woke up screaming silently.

Her disturbing nightmare, compounded with the fact that she'd gotten barely any sleep, meant that she was grouchy the next morning, snapping at Narcissa when she asked her if she knew where her socks were. By the time Andromeda arrived at Kings Cross, she was more than ready to curl up in a compartment and sleep the train ride away. 

Luckily, Bellatrix was a prefect and Narcissa hadn't sat with Andromeda since her first year, so she was able to split up with them, find the first empty compartment, and collapse in it. Just as the gentle shaking of the train was lulling her to sleep, her compartment door was slung open with far more force than necessary. It bounced off the frame and Andromeda's eyes snapped open, taking in a boy looking regretfully at the door, biting his bottom lip. She recognized him from her year. A Hufflepuff, she believed.

"Sorry." said the boy... Tom? Tim? "I didn't realize it would slide so far."

Andromeda just looked at him coldly as he carefully slid the door back. "Do you mind if I sit here?" he asked, looking around at the empty space in the compartment.

Andromeda contemplated it. She was fairly certain this boy was a mudblood, or at least a half-blood. If anyone knew that she'd let him sit with her...

Still, her headache was pounding, and she couldn't find the energy to tell him to leave her presence, so she gestured at the seat in front of her. "I'm going to go to sleep." she said, not waiting for his response before once again curling up on the seat, resting her head on her arm, and letting the train's rhythmic shaking envelop her.

Once again, her dreams were filled with odd visions of tortured animals, Bellatrix, and this time, Narcissa as well. 

_ The three of them were walking in a cold and empty rainforest, free of the usual buzzing atmosphere of life that all rainforests seemed to have. They were silent, graceful, as they made their way through the trees, which seemed to part before them. Suddenly, the dense plants disappeared and became an empty clearing, a fog covering everything but the three sisters, and a lifeless form in front of then, sprawled across the dirt. _

_ Andromeda rushed forward to the form, and recoiled quickly when she realized who it was. In front of her, lying dead, was the boy in her compartment. The name flew out of her subconscious. Ted Tonks. She shook him, desperately searching for a pulse, and turned to her sisters for help. They hadn't rushed forward at all. In fact, they hadn't even moved. _

_ They glared at her, Narcissa's shiny while hair nearly blinding Andromeda. Slowly, they stepped back, once, twice, until they were absorbed into the fog, leaving Andromeda with the dead body of Ted Tonks. _

She jolted awake with a shriek, tears dripping down her face. It took Andromeda a moment to get her bearings, then another to shake her mess of brown curls out of her face. She hastily wiped her tears away with the sleeve of her robe, breathing heavily. She'd never had nightmares, not like this.

"Are you okay?" the kind voice startled her, and she jumped a little in her seat, unintentionally sobbing a little. She realized suddenly that there were three others in the compartment with her, looking at her apprehensively, a game of cards forgotten on the seat beside them.

Andromeda tried to save what little dignity she had by pulling a handkerchief out of her bag and cleaning her face to the best of her ability, but it was too late for that. She gave up and sagged against her seat, tucking the handkerchief away.

"I'm fine." she said, surprised how raw her throat was. She coughed, desperately wishing for some water. Almost immediately, a glass appeared in front of her. She accepted it, and drank greedily, finishing it in seconds. "Thank you." she murmured, looking up.

She nearly screamed when she saw the concerned face of Ted Tonks, her terrible dream rushing back to her all at once. She managed to clamp down on her emotions, though she couldn't keep her hand from shaking as she handed the glass back.

"I'm... going to use the bathroom." she whispered, trying to keep her voice from shaking, sweeping out of the room. As soon as she was in the cramped bathroom, she slumped against the wall, burying her face in her hands. She tried to remember to take deep breaths, but found her breaths coming shortly and rapidly instead, filling the room with the sharp sound of her inhaling, exhaling. She didn't know how long it was until she was finally able to breathe properly and close her eyes without seeing Ted Tonks’ dead body on the silent forest floor. 

Luckily, she hadn't put any makeup on that morning due to her bad mood, so all it took was a quick face wash to make her look presentable again. Looking into the small mirror, she squared her shoulders. She was Andromeda Black. She did not have nightmares, or even daydreams. Nodding to herself, she strode out of the bathroom confidently, holding herself only the way a Black could.

Almost as soon as she slid open the compartment, her facade slipped, but she quickly put it back up. She gave a short nod to the other two occupants, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Hestia Jones, a Ravenclaw and Gryffindor respectively. Both of them had prefect badges shining on their robes, which explained why they hadn't been there at the start of the train ride. In the back of her mind, she realized they had all four houses in the compartment, but she pushed the trivial thought away.

They regarded her like she was a glass sculpture, easily breakable and to be treated with cation. Andromeda gave them a cool look and sat down, pulling a book from her back, very clearly sending out  _ don't talk to me _ signals.

"Would you like to join us?" Ted's voice cut through the uneasy silence in the compartment. Andromeda lowered her book, seeing her shock reflected in Kingsley and Hestia's faces.

"I–" she started. "No, thank you. I need to do some reading." she quickly hid behind her book once more, hoping this train ride from hell would be over soon. Fortunately, the trolley witch came by just then, her purse jingling with change. Andromeda watched wistfully as the three others bought loads and loads of candy, grinning to each other.

"And you, dear?" the witch asked, turning to Andromeda once the others had finished making their purchases. Andromeda sighed, giving in. She gave up a sickle, pointing to a cauldron cake. She nibbled on it, savoring the rich flavor. It wasn't as though her parents never let her have sweets, or starved her or anything, but for the last year or so, Andromeda's mother had been making subtle comments about her figure, and how men didn't like a woman with a hearty appetite. Bellatrix had been less covert, constantly poking Andromeda's stomach and telling her she would let her borrow her clothes, if only Andromeda could fit in them. 

Andromeda realized she'd zoned out, and was staring blankly at the corner. She blinked rapidly, taking another small bite from her cauldron cake.

"Would you like some?" Ted brandished his box of Bertie Bott's at her, the candies inside rattling against each other. Andromeda felt a pang of longing, and she shyly took one, popping it in her mouth. Immediately, her entire face wrinkled as she realized what flavor it was. 

"Spinach." she choked out, quickly finishing off her cauldron cake to cleanse her mouth of the terrible flavor. Ted and his friends gave a hearty laugh, and Andromeda looked up at them, eyes flashing. They stopped quickly. Andromeda realized she never should have been fraternizing with muggles and Gryffindors, and she quickly raised her book, tuning them out once again.

The book, however, was incredibly boring, and Andromeda found her attention wandering quickly. Slowly, her eyes fluttered closed and she fell back asleep. Luckily for her, the nap wasn't long enough for her to produce any more nightmares. 

She felt herself being lightly shook. Feeling as though she'd just fallen asleep, she woke up, surprised that the train was now dark, and it had stopped moving.

"Andromeda." Ted whispered lightly. "Wake up." 

Andromeda realized he was the one shaking her, and sat up quickly, throwing his hands off her. "Don't touch me." she snapped warningly, a yawn creeping in at the edges of her voice.

Ted's eyes flicked down and he stepped back. "Sorry. We're at Hogwarts now, everyone's getting off the train." Andromeda nodded, pushing away her drowsiness to stand up, and follow Ted out of the train. Once she'd gotten over being shaken awake, she realized she felt much better, more rested and anticipating the feast.

She quickly found her dormmates and squeezed into a carriage with them, the air around them filled with chatter. Apparently Ariana had gotten a new boyfriend, which surprised no one. Sasha's parents had finally let her get an owl, which she brandished at them proudly. Anjali had, of course, gotten an O on all of her O.W.L.'s. Mai had made a goal to never skip an assignment again, which she made (and broke) every year. Andromeda only half listened to them as she turned to her best friend, Galea. They'd owled all summer, but they hadn't seen each other in nearly 3 months.

"Andy, where were you sitting?" Galea asked after they'd hugged. "I tried to find you, but Bellatrix and Narcissa didn't know where you were." Andromeda felt her heart speed up a little. Should she lie? To her best friend?

"I fell asleep in this empty compartment, and then some others came in while I was sleeping." she said evasively. "I was asleep most of the ride, anyway."

"Well, I just sat with Darius and his friends. They were so loud, it was ridiculous." Darius was their other best friend, a Slytherin boy in their year. 

"Oh!" Andromeda realized. "What happened to Petra? Is she feeling any better?"

Galea shook her head sadly. "No, I didn't bring her with me. They said cats usually get over things like this pretty quick, so hopefully she'll be better soon."

Andromeda was opening her mouth to respond when the carriage shuddered to a halt, making all of the girls tilt forward a little. They clambered down and strode down the familiar corridors, into the Great Hall.

"Andy!" Darius called, waving her over. She grinned and followed Galea to the table, where Darius had saved them two spots on either side of himself. They sat on the bench, chattering excitedly over one another, until finally the first years were escorted in. Andromeda didn't know any of them, so she paid no special attention as the hat sang its song, then replenished each house. 

She found her gaze wandering around the hall, finally landing on Ted Tonks. He turned his face a little, and Andromeda saw the nightmare flash before her eyes. Her fists clenched and she looked away quickly, trying to blink the image away.

She was glad when the food finally appeared on her table, giving her something to focus on. She hardly talked, letting Darius and Galea swap stories over the rest of the feast. Finally, it was over, and Andromeda trudged down to the Slytherin common room, following the familiar corridor to her dorm rooms. She changed quickly, and mumbled out a  _ Good Night _ to her dormmates before collapsing on her bed and letting sleep take over.


	2. The First Day

Andromeda woke up screaming again. She didn't remember the details of the dream, but there had been blood, and Bellatrix was there. 

"Andy?" Galea tore open the curtains around her four-poster bed. "Andy, are you alright?"

Andromeda couldn't find her voice to speak, so she shook her head rapidly, throwing her covers off of herself. They were suddenly suffocating her, making it harder to breathe. Galea reached her hand out, putting it comfortingly on Andromeda's shoulder. She felt a surge of revulsion, and backed away quickly. Her breathing was sharp and erratic.

"Andy?" Galea's voice was now tinged with a bit of panic. "Andy, please. What's wrong?" she reached her hand out again, and Andromeda felt her heartbeat, which was already going much too fast, speed up. She backed away, nearly falling off the bed.

"Please," she said. "Just–just leave me alone." every word was torture to her raw throat.

"Andy, please just tell me what's wrong?" Galea pleaded. Andromeda heard a buzzing in her ears, drowning out Galea's voice. She shook her head rapidly, trying to get rid of it, hardly noticing as Galea woke the other girls, who soon hovered over her. Thankfully none of them tried to touch her again, and Andromeda was able to slowly get a hold on her breathing, letting the buzzing fade away.

"Can I have some water?" she rasped when she was finally able to speak. Within seconds, a glass was shoved into her hands, and she gulped it down greedily.

"Andy, what happened?" Galea asked. "You were screaming, and then when you woke up, you wouldn't let us touch you for nearly an hour."

Andromeda felt her heart skip a beat when she realized she'd been like that for nearly an hour. It had felt like an eternity. "I..." she started, refilling her water. "I don't know. I just, had a bad dream." she finished lamely.

Galea looked unconvinced, but Andromeda laid back down, pulling the covers off and closing her eyes once again. As she steadied her breathing, pretending to fall asleep, she heard the other girls whispering furiously, no doubt about her. But soon, they disbanded, and she heard sheets rustle as they all went back to sleep.

Andromeda stayed in her bed all night pretending to sleep but unable to actually do so. Her heart never slowed, and by the time that the other girls started waking up, Andromeda felt more exhausted than she had the night before.

She forced herself to swing her legs out of bed, though all she wanted to do was stay there forever. She didn't miss the not-so-secret looks her dormmates gave her as she dressed silently, ignoring them as she accompanied Galea out of the dorm. Luckily, she was a Black, and no one dared comment on the bags under her eyes, though quite a few people stopped to stare.

She ignored them all, sitting next to Darius at the Slytherin table. It took everything she had not to slump down and fall asleep into her porridge. She sighed when she realized that she had Divination the first thing in the morning. Normally, she didn't mind the class, but it was very easy to fall asleep in. 

"What are you still taking Divination for?" Darius asked, peering at her schedule. "It's so boring."

Andromeda scoffed. "Yes, and..." she looked at his schedule. "...Ancient Runes are so much more captivating."

Darius rolled his eyes and pointed at Galea. "Gal is taking Ancient Runes." he pointed out.

"That's because I'm going to become a curse-breaker. I don't actually enjoy the class." Galea responded promptly. "And don't call me Gal."

Darius rolled his eyes and went back to his porridge. "Well, don't expect me to let you use my notes." he said with finality, though Andromeda knew he would end up giving them to her anyway.

She glanced at the clock, and then at her schedule. "I'd better be going." she told her two friends. "The tower's all the way across the school and I don't want to be late on the first day." They nodded at her and waved her goodbye as she joined the trickle of students leaving the Great Hall through the large double doors.

She ascended the ladder, and finding that she was the first student to arrive, she quickly claimed the desk next to the window, hoping the crisp breeze would help her stay awake.

"Ah, Miss Black." greeted Professor Slader. "Welcome."

Andromeda gave him a small nod, pulling her quill and parchment from her bag. "Do we need our textbooks today, sir?" she asked, her hand hovering over her bag.

"No, we will simply be reviewing the course today." the professor responded, his long black hair swishing as he turned to the chalkboard. Andromeda nodded, trying to keep her eyes from drooping shut. Behind her, another student entered the room and she turned quickly, trying to distract herself from how very sleepy the silent room was making her.

She watched as six more students entered. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the final student enter and take a seat at the front of the class. It was Ted Tonks. 

Of course.

The one person who she didn't want to see.

Andromeda quickly turned away from him and focused on the professor. "Welcome." he greeted. "As you can see, the N.E.W.T. level class for Divination is very small. This is because the exam is very difficult for those who do not possess a natural affinity, and many who do pass decide that Divination is not a worthy subject." His voice held no malice, just objective neutrality. "Because of the small size of the class," he continued after a moment. "I suggest you all familiarize yourselves with your fellow students, if you do not already know them, and let go of any... house rivalries." His eyes flickered between Andromeda, the only Slytherin, and the two Gryffindors in the room.

Andromeda was too tired to be offended by this, though she noticed the two Gryffindors glaring at her once Professor Slader had turned away. She kept herself awake through the rest of the class by writing down everything that the Professor said, and pinching herself to keep from dozing off. 

When the bell finally rang, Andromeda startled a little, her head snapping forward. She quickly gathered her things and made her way out of the room. Perhaps if she hurried, she would be able to stop by the hospital wing before her next class and ask Madam Pomfrey for something to help keep her awake. Andromeda cursed herself for not thinking of it earlier as she ran down the hallway, her bag bouncing against her side painfully.

"Hello, Miss Black." Madam Pomfrey said when Andromeda appeared, winded, in the hospital wing.

"Good morning." Andromeda responded immediately, her manners kicking in. "I was wondering if I could get something to help me stay awake. I'm afraid I didn't sleep well last night."

Madam Pomfrey tutted, leading Andromeda to a bed and sitting her down. She waved her wand wordlessly, and a bottle came zooming towards them, liquid sloshing inside. "Too excited to sleep?" she asked, opening the bottle and dabbing some of the potion on a cotton ball.

"Yes." Andromeda lied, stilling her head as Madam Pomfrey smeared some of the odorless potion under Andromeda's eyes.

"Blink a few times." she instructed.

As soon as Andromeda did so, she felt the fog in her brain lift, and the feeling of sluggishness faded away. She grinned her thanks, bursting out of the hospital wing and happily dashing her way to potions.

Thankfully, potions was only Slytherins, and Galea and Darius waved her over as soon as she entered the smoky dungeon. Professor Slughorn gave his speech, introducing the Amortentia, Felix Felicius, and Polyjuice potions, then announcing the competition.

Although Andromeda didn't win the small vial of Felix, she was still smiling lightly as she took her seat at the Slytherin table for lunch. Darius started to sit down beside her, but he was elbowed away by someone.

"Little Andy." Bellatrix crooned, claiming the spot Darius had meant to take. "I heard you've been having nightmares." Andromeda shot a panicked look at Galea, but she shook her head. It must have been one of her other dorm mates.

Andromeda forced herself to smile at Bellatrix. "Oh, it's nothing, Bella. Just fatigue."

Bellatrix smiled back, taking a sandwich onto her plate. "So I shouldn't write to mother about it?"

Andromeda stiffened, an  _ absolutely not _ on her tongue. Her mother would explode if she knew the nature of Andromeda's recent nightmares. Still, she knew that if she said no, Bellatrix would do the opposite. "You may, if you'd like to bother mother with such nonsense. I'm sure she'd be grateful to you." she put just a touch of sarcasm in her voice, enough to influence Bellatrix without letting on that she was being influenced.

"If you say so, Andy." Bellatrix said, standing up. She shoved aside a Ravenclaw as she strutted out of the Great Hall, sandwich still in hand.

Darius quickly took the seat, scowling at Bellatrix's retreating back. "How does she get away with all that and get to be a prefect?" he snarled. "I swear, she's cursed the entire staff or something."

Despite what had just occurred, Andromeda felt a surge of protectiveness for Bellatrix, and she glared at Darius. "Don't talk about her like that." she said. His scowl deepened and he turned slightly, reaching for the pumpkin juice.

Andromeda rolled her eyes and turned to Galea, who looked uncomfortable. "How did you like Ancient Runes, Galea?" she asked emphatically, putting emphasis on  _ Galea. _

Galea dropped her eyes, nervously rubbing her fingernail on her fork. "It was alright." she said finally. "We got some reading to do, but I'll probably finish it off before I go to bed tonight. What about you? How was Divination?"

Andromeda wrinkled her nose a little. Everything she could remember from that morning was shrouded in a haze of sleep. "Well, there's only seven of us." she recalled. "No other Slytherins, unfortunately." Darius gave a vindictive little snort, which Andromeda ignored.

"He said we'll be doing more palmistry, which I look forward to." she finished lamely, wishing she had her notes for this sudden pop quiz. Galea nodded and turned back to her food. They sat awkwardly for the rest of lunch, not speaking much. Andromeda felt relief bloom in her chest when the bell finally rang once again.

The rest of her day passed by in a blur of syllabuses and before she knew it, her lessons were over and she was left with an essay on any Goblin Revolution of her choice and a wand movement to practice. She, Darius, and Galea went to the library together, planning on getting their homework done quickly, but it was filled with students who had the same idea.

"You two go to the common room." Andromeda instructed. "I'll just get the books we need and be along soon." 

"You're sure?" Galea asked. Andromeda nodded, and the two of them turned and left the room.

"Alright." Andromeda murmured to herself. "The fourth Goblin Revolution." she pursued the shelves, running her finger over every spine as she read the titles. Before she knew it, she was deep in the library, where it was more secluded.

"-don't think it was just some sort of show?" Andromeda froze as a familiar voice made its way through the shelves to reach her.

"Don't be stupid, Kingsley." This was Hestia. "Why would she pretend to have a violent nightmare?" Andromeda stiffened when she realized they were talking about  _ her. _ She inched closer to the table they were sitting at.

"I wonder what the nightmare was about?" Andromeda flinched as she heard Ted Tonks's voice, which, unlike Kingsley and Hestia's was devoid of any contempt.

"That monster of a sister she has, probably." Kingsley murmured savagely. Andromeda narrowed her eyes. How dare he say that about her sister? Maybe Bellatrix acted a little monstrous sometimes, but that was no excuse for degrading her behind her back. She almost missed what Hestia said next.

"I wonder if they... hurt her?" Hestia endeavored cautiously, her voice full of concern. Andromeda felt a spark of anger ignite in her chest, and before she could stop herself, she strode from behind the bookshelf.

The three of them turned, surprise on their faces. "The next time you make wild accusations about my family," she snapped. "Why don't you have the  _ courage–“  _ she glared at Hestia, the supposed Gryffindor. "–to do it in front of our faces?" 

With that, she stormed away, leaving behind the gaping Ted, Hestia, and Kingsley. Honestly, they were lucky Bellatrix hadn't overheard them. They would be in the hospital wing. 

_ And what a preposterous suggestion!  _ she thought, whirling out of the library with perhaps more force than necessary.  _ As if her family would ever hurt her! They weren't barbarians, despite what mudbloods like that Ted seemed to think. And if they thought that– _

"Andromeda! Wait!" Andromeda was yanked out of her thoughts suddenly by a voice down the hall. She whirled around to face Ted Tonks.

"What?" she asked sharply. "Come to accuse me of murder?"

"No!" he said hastily. "No, I came to apologize." Andromeda froze, but recovered herself quickly. What a weak, Hufflepuff thing to do. "My friends and I were very out of line, and we shouldn't have been talking about you—or your family—behind your back." 

It took a moment for Andromeda to process this. She didn't want to accept it, but she could tell he was sincere. She gave a short nod and spun back around, making her way down the corridor once again.

"Wait!" 

Andromeda sighed, turning  _ again.  _ "What." she said icily.

"Are you alright?" Tonks asked abruptly.

Andromeda furrowed her brow. What kind of question was that? She knew the answer was yes, but she just couldn't find her voice to say it. "I... what kind of question is that?"

"You just seemed tired in Divination today, and you had that nightmare yesterday, so I was just wondering if you were alright." he explained.

Andromeda sent him a withering glare that would normally make people step back, but he just looked at her, his innocent eyes carrying a question. "I'm fine." she said, the tenderness in her voice surprising even her. Before she could do something ridiculous like thank him for asking, she spun for the final time and hurried to the Slytherin common room, evading Darius and Galea's questions about why she'd come back empty-handed.


	3. Quidditch Tryouts

As she undressed slowly, Andromeda eyed the bed warily. The potion was wearing off, and drowsiness was hitting her like a wall of pillows. During dinner, she'd nearly dozed off into her shepherds pie. Still, she dreaded the nightmares far more than she dreaded being sleepy the next day.

Slowly, everyone else in her dorm slid into their beds, curling up contentedly, and Andromeda climbed into her own bed, stiffly pulling the blanket over herself. She tried to fight the drowsiness, but it pulled at her, and she was asleep soon.

Andromeda had no dreams, though her sleep was by no means deep. She woke up feeling more rested, but also on edge. Why had the dreams stopped? Was she too tired? Had something else happened? Though she tried to ignore her fears, she still felt a pang of relief in her chest when she saw her sister in the pale green light of the common room, acting normal, tripping a first year with her foot.

The day passed slowly, and Andromeda simply went through the motions, letting everything happen to her. In Charms, she caught Ted Tonks looking at her, a peculiar look on his face. Her concentration dropped as they locked eyes, along with the brick she was levitating. She tore her gaze away from his quickly, catching the brick before it could slam into her desk.

At night, she hesitated once again to get into her bed, fearing the nightmares. But they were nowhere to be found. Her sleep was as peaceful and empty as it had been before. 

The week passed, Andromeda getting acquainted with her classes and the nightmares making no appearance. By the time Saturday arrived, Andromeda was much happier and looking forward to her first weekend at Hogwarts. Unfortunately, she had some homework to complete first. The weather was nice enough, for September, so Andromeda decided to take her things to the lawn and study there, enjoy the weather a bit. As she stepped into the common room, she was accosted immediately by Janus, the captain of the quidditch team.

"Andromeda!" he called loudly. "Quidditch tryouts are tomorrow. We could really use you this year!" he spread his arms hopefully, like he didn't ask her every year, only to be rejected every time.

"Maybe next year!" she called, trying to end the conversation quickly. Ever since he'd seen her flying in her third year, he'd been hell bent on having her as the Slytherin keeper. It had only worsened when he'd been made capitan last year.

"I won't be here next year!" he exclaimed. "Please, just do it for me?" he pouted.

Andromeda shook her head, pushing down the smile threatening her lips. "Sorry, Janus." she said, quickly exiting the common room before he could say anything else. Perhaps, in a different life, she could join the quidditch team. But she was a Black, and that meant she didn't waste her time on a broomstick.

She nearly missed the staircase as it rotated away from her. She quickly hopped onto the second step, raising her arms to get her balance. Unfortunately, she had forgotten that this was a trick step, and her feet sunk into the moving staircase. To make matters worse, Andromeda’s wand slipped from her hand, and tumbled down the staircase, away from her.

Andromeda cursed, then quickly checked to see if anyone had heard. Fortunately, but also unfortunately, no one was in the corridor. Taking a deep breath, Andromeda took stock of her situation. She was right in the center of the stair, too far from either of the railings to pull herself up. Her wand was at the bottom of the stairs, much too far for her to reach.

_ Alright, Andy,  _ she coached herself.  _ Now is as good as any other time to practice wandless magic. _ Closing her eyes, she imagined her magic funneling through her, coming out of her every pore. "Accio Wand." she declared, her voice full of conviction.

Nothing happened.

Andromeda cracked her eyes open. The wand hadn't even moved. 

_ That's alright. _ she told herself.  _ Nobody gets it on their first try. _

But Andromeda didn't get it on her second try either, or her third, or her fourth. As she inhaled, going for a fifth attempt, she heard voices. People were coming down the corridor. Andromeda prayed it wasn't a first year, or a Gryffindor.

Someone heard her prayers and shot them back at her with an  _ address not found _ sticker. Ted Tonks, along with Kingsley and Hestia, rounded the corner. Why were they always together? They weren't even in the same houses! They stopped when they saw her, and Ted furrowed his brow.

"Andromeda? Are you stuck?" he asked.

"No." she lied hastily. Hestia snorted, but Kingsley elbowed her.

Tonks looked like he was trying not to smile as he ascended the stairs to where Andromeda was. "Well..." he started. "Even if you're not stuck," he nodded seriously. "you still appear to have dropped your wand. It would be the gentlemanly thing to return it to you." he scooped it off the step and held it out to Andromeda. She snatched it away from him, seething.

"What would a mudblood know about being a gentleman?" she hissed. She used the shocked silence to free her feet, using her wand, and stride off. She heard Hestia shout something after her, but she just kept on walking.

For whatever reason, her heart was beating very fast and her stomach filled with regret as she flopped down under one of the trees. She'd called people mudbloods before. It was what they were, after all. No wand could change that. And yet... she felt a deep hole of shame burning through her as Tonks' injured expression played in her mind, over and over.

Andromeda quickly flipped open her textbook, starting on the chapters she was meant to read. Her reading was almost immediately interrupted. "Andy, I'm bored." Narcissa sat gracefully on the grass next to Andromeda, peering at her expectantly.

"Then go find one of your friends, Cissy. Don't bother me, I'm studying." Andromeda replied without even looking up.

"Don't call me Cissy." Narcissa warned. "And they're all doing boring things right now."

"Why don't you go for a fly?" Andromeda snapped, turning to her sister. "Or find Bella, or do one of the other million things that are  _ not  _ bothering me?" Narcissa glared at Andromeda for a moment before flouncing off, her hair waving back and forth mesmerizingly.

Andromeda, finishing her reading quickly, though she hardly absorbed any of it. What she needed was a good fly to clear her head, and to rid herself of that hot ball of humiliation in her stomach. She went back to the common room, careful to avoid the trick step, and dropped her school things on her bed unceremoniously before quickly grasping her broom in her hand and walking out to the quidditch pitch.

Luckily, it was empty, and Andromeda had lots of space to whirl around to her heart's content, hardly noticing when the cold turned her nose red and her hands numb. Before she knew it, lunch was long gone, and the autumn sun was brushing the horizon. Anticipating a hot cup of tea by the fire, Andromeda flew back into Hogwarts, hopping expertly off her broom just as she entered the castle.

She nodded to a first-year in the hallway, unable to keep the smile from her face. Her head was clear and refreshed, as it always was after a good flying.

However, her bright mood dimmed as soon as she entered the Great Hall. There were a few students scattered about, enjoying the snacks left out between mealtimes. One such group was clustered together on the Ravenclaw table, consisting of Tonks, Kingsley, and Hestia. 

Kingsley and Hestia glared at her as she poured herself some tea at the Slytherin table, but Tonks simply looked miserable. He tried to distract his two friends, make them stop boring holes into her head, but they just kept watching her, to the point where she felt itchy from their collective gaze. 

Finally, she could no longer take it, and she whirled around and walked to them. "May I help you?" she asked waspishly.

Hestia scoffed loudly, and Kingsley rolled his eyes. "You could apologize." he offered sarcastically, knowing she would do no such thing. Andromeda almost turned to Tonks and apologized, just to prove him wrong. Almost. 

Instead, she snapped back. "What do  _ I  _ have to apologize for? It's not my fault he's a mudblood." The word tasted sour in her mouth. 

Hestia stood up, pulling her wand out, but Tonks quickly pulled her back down. He whispered something to her, calming her down, and she sat back down, though the scowl on her face remained. 

"It's fine, Andromeda. They're just upset over nothing." Tonks said, not meeting her eyes. Andromeda felt disgust bloom in her chest, along with... a spark of respect? Respect, for a weakling like Tonks? It must have just been the tea.

"Good." she said, turning away, anticipating the warmth of the fire in the Slytherin common room.

~

_ Andromeda was on her back, lying as stiff as a board. Above her, an endless sky of stars stretched out, more than she'd ever seen before.  _

_ "Andromeda?" a voice crooned from beside her. Bellatrix. Andromeda tried to turn her head, but she found she couldn't move, except to talk. _

_ "What?" she asked. "Where?" she struggled harder against the force pinning her to the ground, but to no avail. _

_ Bellatrix laughed loudly, and moved closer to Andromeda, hovering over her, her face concealed by her dark hair. Andromeda noticed Bellatrix was holding Andromeda's wand when she pushed the point into Andromeda's heart. "Down, girl." she crooned, and Andromeda felt the force push down on her harder, crushing her, trapping her. _

_ Bellatrix's laughter filled the air, choking Andromeda as she was crushed further and further into the ground, until it swallowed her up _ .

Andromeda woke up screaming again. This time, her mouth was filled with locks of curly hair, so her screams were muffled, and no one woke up. She spat the hair from her mouth and sat up, shaking violently. Her hands clawed at the air, desperately searching for something. She didn't know what. 

Eventually, her hands closed around the bedpost, and Andromeda squeezed it tightly, finding solace in its firmness, its solid presence. She rocked back and forth, her hands locked around the bedpost for hours, until finally the sun came up, waking the other girls.

"Andy?" Galea asked, poking her head into Andromeda's four-poster. "Are you still asleep? I was going to go watch the quidditch tryouts, but if you're still asleep, you don't need to come."

Andromeda sat up, trying to wipe away her tears discreetly. "I'll come, Galea. Just give me a moment to change."

"Alright, I'll go find Darius and wait in the common room." Andromeda heard the swish of robes and a  _ thunk _ as the heavy door closed.

Still shivering, Andromeda tried to put her thoughts together. She had to go to tryouts with Galea, and act normal.

_ Get out of bed. _ she told herself first.

_ Now change into your robes. _

Eventually, Andromeda made her way to the common room, where Darius and Galea were bent over a parchment, heads brushing. "Morning." Andromeda greeted, startling them. 

"Andy, finally." Darius said, rolling up the parchment. "We're going to have to take breakfast down to the stands if we want to arrive on time for the tryouts to start."

Andromeda nodded, following them out the room. She silently snatched a piece of toast from the table, draining a glass of milk before following her friends outside. 

Almost as soon as they arrived onto the pitch, Janus accosted her. "Andromeda! Have you come to try out?" Andromeda shook her head.

"Oh, I would, but I've forgotten my broom upstairs. Perhaps next year." she tried.

Janus motioned to the broom cupboard. "We have plenty of school brooms. You can use one of them just for today." Without waiting for a response, he grabbed her shoulders and started steering her to the broomshed. She threw a desperate look behind her, but Galea and Darius were no help, suppressing giggles as they watched her be steered away. Exhausted as she was, Andromeda had no power to resist Janus as he shoved a broom into her hand and lined her up with the rest of the potential keepers.

She was one of the last keepers to try out, so she had time to finish her toast and pinch herself a few times, trying to wake up properly. Finally, it was her turn.

Mostly out of instinct, Andromeda caught all five quaffles that were thrown at the hoops, making Janus nearly vibrate with excitement. She was informed that she had made the team, and would be notified of upcoming practices soon.

All of this Andromeda watched with a detached interest. She knew it was happening to her, but it was as if she was hovering above it all, observing as Andromeda Black made the quidditch team. She trudged back up to the common room, ready for a long shower, Galea and Darius in tow.

Daruis was grinning at her, though she could see the thinly veiled jealousy on his face. Galea was chattering about Slytherin's chances for the cup this year, especially now that they had Andromeda. Darius soon started debating with her the chances of Ravenclaw getting a seeker good enough to replace last years, and Andromeda zoned out, putting all of her focus on walking without falling asleep.

She felt better after a shower, and after she dried her curls, Andromeda headed to the Great Hall for lunch. Galea and Darius were nowhere to be found, so she assumed they'd be at the Great Hall. They, unfortunately, were not there, and Andromeda took a seat alone. Luckily, there were many empty seats, as Andromeda had arrived on the early side of lunch.

She miserably dug into her lunch, checking the door every few seconds, hoping her friends would walk in. Unfortunately, they did not, and Andromeda had soon finished her lunch and had no reason to stay in the Great Hall, so she left.

Taking the slightly longer route back to the Slytherin common room, Andromeda fell into a daze, thinking about her nightmares. What could they mean? Why had they come back? How could she make them stop?

The rest of the day passed in a daze, Andromeda doing her best not to fall asleep again, fearing what she might see if she did. She never did find Galea and Darius, and that night, after everyone else had fallen asleep, she heard Galea creep silently into her bed, her breathing slowing quickly until Andromeda was the only girl left not sleeping.

She cast a silencing charm around her bed, hoping it would last long enough that if she had any more nightmares, they wouldn't know. Finally, she could resist the pull no longer, and she curled up into a ball and fell asleep.


	4. A Crushed Doll

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for graphic depictions of violence

_ It had been noon this time, the sunlight almost blinding. Andromeda was playing with a toy train, humming to herself, enjoying herself. _

_ Then, out of nowhere, a shadow blocked out the sun, and Bellatrix's foot came crashing down onto Andromeda's train. It shattered under her black shoes. Andromeda started to wail, trying desperately to put the pieces of her toy back together, but Bellatrix just laughed cruelly, grinding her foot into the shards of the train. _

_ Suddenly, Narcissa appeared in her periphery, carrying another toy. This one looked like a doll, though it moved about wildly, wriggling in her hands. She dropped it into Andromeda's hand and all at once, it stopped moving, becoming perfectly still. The doll was strangely warm in Andromeda's hand, and she peered at it, trying to get a better look at it's tiny features. It had a mop of sandy blonde hair, and a round, boyish face filled with innocence. She felt like she should know this doll, but she shrugged the feeling away. _

_ Setting it on the ground, she started to move its arms and legs, manipulating into doing a dance for her. Andromeda's laugh filled the air, a happy giggle. However, it was cut short when Bellatrix's foot came crashing down onto the doll. Instead of ripping apart at the seams and releasing fluffy stuffing, the doll exploded, leaving behind a bloody stain and a pile of small innards. _

_ Andromeda screamed as blood splattered on her face. _

She sat up, her arms tangled in her duvet. Her thoughts were racing, her eyes darting around wildly, trying to make sense of what she had just seen. She raised a hand to her face, feeling only tears and mucus, but no blood. Her stomach heaved, and Andromeda dashed out of her bed, making into the bathroom just before she vomited.

She stayed there, dry heaving and sobbing into the toilet, wishing the nightmares would just go away. After she'd managed to get ahold of herself (luckily, no one had entered the bathroom and seen her in this state), Andromeda crept back to her dorm, checking the time on the wall clock.

It was 2 am.

Andromeda sighed and slid back into her bed, but as soon as she touched the duvet, her nightmare flashed before her eyes. She dashed away, repulsed by the bed. Andromeda's breathing started to quicken again, and she felt like her bones were shaking in her body.

She had to get out.

Trying not to sob, Andromeda flung open the door to her dormitory and dashed out of the Slytherin common room, trying to leave behind the bed and the terrible, terrible nightmare.

Andromeda didn't know how long she wandered the halls, bare feet freezing against the cold stone floor. In the back of her mind, she realized how against the rules this was, but her head was spinning too much for her to hold on to the thought.

All at once, she heard a voice. It took a few seconds for her to place it, but when she did, she hid behind a tapestry quickly.

"I heard something, I swear. Someone's out here." Kingsley Shacklebolt said.

"How could you have heard anything? I've been here the entire time, and I haven't heard anything." Hestia responded testily. They rounded the corner, coming closer to the tapestry Andromeda was behind. She stiffened, wishing she could melt into the wall. She tried to press herself against it more securely, so they wouldn't notice the odd lump under the tapestry. Unfortunately, this caused the heavy tapestry to ripple, and Hestia and Kinsgley jumped to attention, flicking the tapestry aside with their wands.

"Andromeda?" Kingsley asked. He was so shocked that he forgot to put the contempt in his voice. They inched closer, the light on their wands making her blink rapidly.

Hestia grinned. "Oh, I'm going to take  _ so  _ many points away for this." Andromeda barely heard it over the panic in her mind as they walked closer. She felt her heart beating faster, her breathing start to quicken. 

"Wait, Hestia. Something's wrong with her. Look."

Andromeda's head started to buzz as they got even closer, and she tried to push herself into the wall, to get  _ away _ from them.

"Please." she croaked, and they froze. Mustering all of her strength, she pushed past the two of them, releasing herself. Once she was behind them, standing in the large corridor, she felt herself start to calm down.

"Andromeda?" Hestia asked, her voice gentle. "Are you alright?" Hestia put her hand on Andromeda's shoulder, and she felt lightning bolts of panic shoot through her. She yelped and shook off the hand, scampering away from Hestia.

"Please." she said again. "Please, don't—" her voice became tangled up in a sob.

"That's alright." Kinsgley said, his deep voice warm. "We won't touch you." Andromeda nodded, rubbing her goosebump-covered arms.

"Would you like my cloak?" Kingsley asked, holding it out to her. Andromeda took it, wrapping it around herself, though it did nothing to stop the shivering. She heard Kingsley and Hestia whispering furiously to each other, glancing at her. Finally, they stopped, and Kingsley spoke to her again, though he didn't come any closer.

"Andromeda, I think you should go to the hospital wing." he said carefully.

Andromeda shook her head wildly, feeling terror build up in her stomach.

"It’ll make you feel better, if you just talk to Madam Pomfrey." Hestia added. "We'll all go together, hm?" her voice was also calm, and Andromeda felt herself warming to the suggestion. She took a deep breath, and nodded.

They kept their distance as they escorted her to the hospital wing and woke Madam Pomfrey. She gave Andromeda a small bottle after asking her some questions, telling her it would give her dreamless sleep.

"No nightmares?" Andromeda asked, examining the bottle closely.

"No nightmares. If you'd like, you can stay here for the night, just in case. I'll be here." Madam Pomfrey offered. Andromeda shook her head wildly. She didn't want people thinking she was sick.

"Alright, then. I suggest you get going if you want to be awake for class." Madam Pomfrey said, motioning for the two prefects to accompany her.

They were silent as they walked to the Slytherin common room, questions hanging heavily in the air. When she arrived at the entrance, she turned to them.

"I...thank you." she said, barely a whisper. "And... I'm sorry." she didn't say for what, but they nodded acceptingly, turning and leaving her to sleep.

The potion worked, and though she still felt lingering traces of the nightmare as she woke up, she couldn't help but smile. At breakfast, she noticed Kingsley and Hestia both looking at her from their respective tables, and her smile faltered. She looked away quickly.

Fortunately, her first class was Divination, so she was able to leave Galea and Darius at the table early, arriving at the class first again.

"Miss Black." said Professor Slader. "Take out your textbook, and open it to page 43. We will be starting to interpret dreams." He wrote the instructions out on the board, nodding to the other students as they entered the classroom.

"Everyone will pair up and use the spell I taught you last week to view each other's dreams. You do not need to interpret them, just practice viewing for now. There will be one group of three." Professor Slader said. Before Andromeda could figure out who would accept pairing up with her, Ted Tonks approached her.

"Partners?" he asked, sitting at the desk next to her. She nodded, unable to say anything, remembering the sound he made when Bellatrix crushed him under her foot.

"Alright, you go first," he instructed. Andromeda pulled out her wand.

"Are you focusing on the dream?" she asked. He nodded, closing his eyes. She murmured the spell, pointing at the center of his forehead. Suddenly, a scene started to play out in her head. It was Tonks, riding a horse through an open meadow. Suddenly, the horse sprouted wings and shot up to the sky, past the stars. All of a sudden, just as the horse was about to touch the sun, it froze, and Tonks fell off.

Andromeda gasped and the scene stopped playing suddenly. "That's where I woke up." Tonks explained, rubbing the back of his neck. Andromeda nodded, looking at the clock. Though it had felt like only seconds to her, over half of the class period had passed while she was watching his dream.

"Well done, Miss Black." Professor Slader said, hovering over her. "If you would try now, Mister Tonks." he nodded at Tonks's wand.

Tonks hesitated slightly, his eyes flicking to Andromeda. "I don't have to, if you don't want me to." he said in a whisper. "Hestia told me what happened."

"Just do it." Andromeda hissed back, Professor Slader's impatient gaze boring into her.

Looking unhappy to be doing it, he waved his wand and muttered the incantation, and Andromeda saw her dream all over again. She thought she was prepared, but as soon as it started, she felt like she was crumbling from the inside. Watching it wasn't nearly as bad as being in the middle of it, but she still felt her stomach twist at the way Bellatrix's shoe slammed into her toy train. Even though she knew it was coming, she gave a great, shuddering gasp when her doll exploded under Bellatrix's foot.

As they left the dream, Andromeda found herself clutching the desk, shaking violently. Tonks was looking straight ahead, his face pale and eyes wide. Everyone else was still in their own dreams, so no one turned to them.

"Was that...me?" Tonks asked finally, meeting Andromeda's eyes.

"I don't know." her voice came out as a sob. "I don't know."

He seemed to realize she was about to start crying, because his face softened, and he reached out to put a hand on Andromeda's arm. "Hey, hey." he said soothingly.

Andromeda felt her heartbeat gradually start to slow, until she could breathe normally again. She looked down at Tonks' hand on her arm and he quickly removed it, blushing a little. She saw him open his mouth to say something, but he was cut off by the professor's loud voice.

"Hopefully you were able to view each other's dreams. Your homework is to write your dreams down, and we will start interpreting them next class." Just as he finished, the bell rang loudly, and Andromeda shot out of her seat, ready to get out of the tower.


	5. Hogsmeade

Andromeda took the potion again that night, and enjoyed a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Galea looked tired, but Andromeda felt the opposite, more refreshed than she had in weeks. When Janus told her that they had the first quidditch practice today, she actually grinned at him.

Her good mood was slightly dimmed at the breakfast table when she received a letter from her mother. Her heart dropped a little when she saw the family owl, a majestic barn owl, swooping at her. She prayed it would skip her and go to Bella or Cissy, but it landed on her shoulder, sticking its leg.

_ Andromeda, _

_ I have been informed that you have joined the Slytherin Quidditch Team. While I am thrilled that you are showing your loyalty to the most noble house of Hogwarts, I must point out that you are a Black, and as such, you cannot be seen playing such an unseemly sport. I am not asking you to step down from your position, but I cannot approve of this development. _

_ Signed, _

_ Druella Black. _

Andromeda rolled her eyes and read it out loud to Galea and Darius, crumpling it in her fist after. "I am not asking you to step down from your position." she scoffed. "That's rich." Galea and Darius glanced at each other, but said nothing, likely not wanting to risk insulting Andromeda's mother.

Andromeda changed the topic quickly, and they talked about their classes for a while before finally heading to class.

After her lessons, Andromeda quickly dropped her things at her dorms, grabbed her broom, and made her way to the quidditch pitch. It was on the cold side, but the sun was out, and Andromeda was sure she would start to warm up when she started flying. Janus presented her with a set of robes emblazoned with Slytherin colors and instructed for her to change into them.

After she did so, she lined up on the sidelines with the rest of the team. She recognized them all, of course, and they traded excited smiles. 

"Alright." Janus clapped his hands together. "As you can see, we have some new faces this year. I've put together an exemplary team, and I think we have a real shot at winning the cup this year. Today, we're just going to start getting to know each other, the way we play, so that we can be an effective team."

And so it went. Being keeper didn't require her to interact too much with her teammates, except to throw the quaffle back at them every once in a while. She thought it was an exceptional practice, as she only let in two quaffles. By the time the sun was setting, she was grinning, cheeks flushed, already anticipating the next practice. She felt a pang of regret for not joining the team sooner as she took a quick shower.

She was ravenous at dinner, and hardly talked for eating. She stopped by the hospital wing to get the potion, and rolled, happily exhausted, into bed.

Slowly, Andromeda's time at Hogwarts started to improve. Her grade in Divination dropped because she had no dreams to interpret, but it was better than having the nightmares. She started to spend more time on the pitch, and grew in her keeping abilities. September turned into October, rain turned into snow, and the first Hogsmeade visit was posted on the notice board.

Galea and Darius glanced at her when she asked them where they wanted to go.

"Listen, Andy." Galea said. "Darius and I have something to tell you." Andromeda's smile faded, her heart thudding. Galea swallowed. "Well, you might have noticed I've been sneaking out of the dorm a lot." Andromeda had been sleeping so deeply that she hadn't noticed, but she nodded. "Well, it's because I—well, Darius and I..."

"We're dating." Darius finished, taking Galea's hand. Andromeda felt her mouth drop open in an almost comical way and she blinked once, twice. 

Then, a smile stretched across her face and she giggled. "That's great!" she exclaimed. "But why didn't you tell me?"

"We didn't want to change anything between us. We're still your best friends, Andy." Galea reassured.

Andromeda nodded. "Of course, of course. Oh, I'm so happy for you!"

Darius quickly started to speak over her. "Andy, we were planning on spending the Hogsmeade day together, y'know, as a couple. Just... the two of us."

Andromeda felt her heart drop a little. They wanted to spend the day together... without her. "Oh." she said. She cleared her throat. "Of course, I understand. I can always go with the quidditch team. You ... you enjoy your day together." She plastered a smile on her face, pushing her hurt feelings deep down inside. 

Galea's shoulders relaxed and she gave Andromeda a quick hug. "Thank you, Andy." Andromeda nodded, watching the two of them turn away and hurry off to lunch. The twinge of hurt stayed buried in her chest all week, but she hid it well. By the time Halloween, and the Hogsmeade visit, arrived, she still hadn't made plans with anyone else. She had briefly considered asking Bella what she was going to do, but the thought filled her stomach with revulsion, so she decided to just go it alone. Plenty of people did it, after all.

As Andromeda stood, shivering, in the line for butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks, she felt someone watching her. She turned and saw none other than Ted Tonks, Kingsley, and Hestia watching her from a table in the corner. She turned away as they quickly dropped their gazes.

She'd been mostly avoiding them for the last month, though she caught them looking at her frequently, in the classes they shared together, in the Great Hall during mealtimes. It was harder to keep her distance from Tonks, especially in Divination, but she managed to evade him.

Andromeda realized she'd made it to the front of the line, and she exchanged some money for a butterbeer, relishing in its warmth. Her heart dropped when she realized that the only available table for one was right next to Tonks' table. Sighing and keeping her head down, Andromeda sat down at the table, pulling out the book she'd bought to pass the time. She tried to focus on the book, but she could feel their stares burning into her.

Finally, she spun around to face them, leaning in to bridge the gap between their tables.

"What?" she asked.

They looked at each other panickedly. "Nothing." Hestia said too quickly. "Wha-what do you mean?"

"Oh, please. Don't pretend you haven't been gaping at me since I walked in here. If you have something to say, say it." 

Tonks swallowed, looking nervous. "Well, we were just wondering—" Hestia elbowed him sharply and he cut off. "Nothing, it's nothing."

Andromeda raised an eyebrow, and he blanched, licking his lips. "What is it?" she repeated.

"Alright, we were wondering if you're still having nightmares." Kingsley finally said after a moment of silence. Hestia elbowed him too, but he just glared back at her.

Andromeda inhaled sharply before answering.  _ “Not _ that it's any of your business," she said. They looked at each other guiltily "I am fine. I have my potion now, so I don't dream anymore. Are you satisfied?"

Hestia nodded, looking ashamed. Andromeda took that as a signal to turn back to her table, but Tonks asked, "What are you reading?" 

Andromeda sighed. "The Adventures of Yarrow the Small. It's about a goblin travelling the world in the 1400's."

"Oh, cool. Is it interesting?"

Andromeda furrowed her brow. "Cool? It's the normal temperature for a book." she pressed her palm to the book to check.

Tonks grinned. "Cool is muggle slang it means something is...admirable, I guess. For example, I would say 'Andromeda is cool,' and that would mean you're admirable. Andromeda is such a mouthful. Do you go by a nickname?"

Andromeda blinked at the new word.  _ Cool. _ "My friends call me Andy. You may call me Andromeda." she said cooly, ending the conversation. She turned back to her table and bent over her book once again.

Luckily, Tonks didn't try to engage her again, though she heard them whispering behind her back. She rolled her eyes and focused on her book. As soon as she finished her butterbeer, Andromeda stood and left the Three Broomsticks, shivering against the wind. She decided to do her gift shopping first, thinking she might as well get everyone's birthday gifts for the year now. 

She found a purse for her mother, a watch for her father, some color-changing ink for Narcissa, and a shining gold necklace for Bellatrix. She glanced at the clock in the shop before walking out, her purchases swinging. She still had half the day to spend here. Normally, she would've spent much more time in the Three Broomsticks with Darius and Galea, but they were on their date, so she had nothing to do. Finally, she decided to just go back up to the castle and do some flying.

"—soon as I'm out of here, I'll join him!" Andromeda froze as she heard Bellatrix's voice, the wind snatching at the words. She peered around the corner and saw her standing behind Honeydukes, surrounded by a group of familiar witches and wizards.

"His mission is a noble one, indeed." Rodolphus Lestrange said. Andromeda shivered at the devotion in his voice. "He will be pleased to have one of such noble blood among his followers."

Andromeda’s foot scuffed against the ground, and Rolophus spun around. She quickly ducked away as he turned. "Who is there?" he called. She heard footsteps near her as they started walking out of the alley. Her heart beating rapidly, she hurried away from the shop, the wind biting at her face. 

She was so disturbed by what she had just seen and heard that she ran straight into someone on the street. "Sorry!" she exclaimed, watching as a bunch of sweets tumbled to the ground. She looked up, and cursed. She had run into none other than Hestia, flanked by her two friends. Andromeda waved her wand and the fallen goods flew back into Hestia's arms. 

Glancing behind her, she saw Bellatrix's distinctive black curls bouncing down the crowded street. She was walking with Rodolphus, both of them looking suspiciously at the crowd. Without thinking, Andromeda ducked behind the three of them, using Kingsley's bulk to hide herself. Bellatrix walked by without noticing her, though she did throw a disgusted look at Tonks.

Andromeda released a breath, the cold air making puffs as she straightened, watching Bellatrix's receding back. "Sorry." she panted again, spitting out a curl, which the wind shoved back into her mouth.

"Hiding from someone?" Kingsley asked, unable to keep the smile off his face. Andromeda glared at him, but didn't respond.

"It's no problem,  _ 'Dromeda,” _ Tonks said, grinning at her. 

She glared at him. "’Dromeda?" she demanded as his shoulders shook with laughter.

He only grinned harder in response. Andromeda rolled her eyes and turned to leave, trying once again to move her hair out of her face. She could feel the wind's malice as her hair was shoved back into her face. She gave up as she trudged up to the castle, shoving her hands in her pockets to keep warm. She spotted a new notice on the board as she passed through the common room. The first quidditch game was to be next week, Gryffindor against Ravenclaw. Janus had made it mandatory for them to attend, to scope out the other teams and their strategies, so Andromeda knew about it already.

Andromeda decided to spend the rest of the day in the library, catching up on her schoolwork. It would be empty because most students would be at Hogsmeade. Lugging her bag with her, Andromeda found a table in the library, and got to work. She had been working for an hour when she was suddenly interrupted by a voice.

"Do you mind if we sit here?" It was Ted Tonks, with his two friends. Again. Were they following her, or was fate just out to get her?

Andromeda glanced around and saw that the library had filled up quite a bit while she'd been in her zone, and this was the only table left. Andromeda sighed and shifted her books around to make space for them. "Alright." she conceded.

Tonks grinned at her as they sat, and she glared back at him with all of her strength. It did nothing to dispel the infuriating grin.

"Herbology first? Hestia asked, glancing between her two friends. Andromeda tried to tune them out as they quizzed each other, glancing at their textbooks, but she couldn't help but listen.

"What are the weaknesses of Devil's Snare?" Kingsley asked. 

"Light and heat." Andromeda muttered subconsciously, the information coming to her from the back of her mind. She realized she'd said it out loud and looked up, her fingers tightening around her quill. "Sorry." she murmured. "It just slipped out."

"It's alright." Hestia said, nodding. "Would... would you like to join us?" she asked.

"What?" Andromeda's grip on her quill loosened and it fell onto her parchment.

"I mean, you're in our year. You have the same classes. You can join us if you'd like." Hestia offered.

"I—" Andromeda glanced around the library. There were not Slytherins close enough to see her consorting with muggle-borns and Gryffindors, so she nodded. "I suppose so."

The next hour of studying was much more enjoyable than the first one. Andromeda would have never admitted it, but she had more fun studying with the three of them than she'd ever had with Galea and Darius. They cracked jokes and poked fun at the material as they studied, tossing questions and answers back and forth, interspersed with conversation.

When they finally wrapped up, Andromeda felt a pang of disappointment as they broke apart. "Same time next week?" Hestia asked, shouldering her bag. 

"Yes, after Ravenclaw destroys Gryffindor at the game." Kingsley said, meeting Hestia's gaze.

"I think you mean after Gryffindor destroys Ravenclaw." Hestia snapped, leaning forward to glare at Kingsley.

"That's ridiculous, right Ted?" Kingsley turned to them.

"Keep me out of this. I still don't understand quidditch." Tonks said, ducking his head.

"Well, Andromeda knows, right? Ravenclaw is superior." Kingsley and Hestia turned to her expectantly.

"Obviously, Slytherin is the best." she said, and was met with protests. "But,  _ but, _ I think Ravenclaw's team is better this year. Better than Gryffindor, at least."

Kingsley gave a triumphant smile to Hestia and Hestia turned her stink eye to Andromeda. She scoffed and turned away, walking out of the library. Kingsley followed her, gloating loudly. Andromeda realized her quill had fallen to the ground, and as she bent down to pick it up, Tonks crouched with her, meeting her eyes.

"You're welcome to come next week as well." he offered kindly. "I really enjoyed studying with you."

Andromeda coughed to avoid responding, her emotions warring inside of her. She had also enjoyed studying with them, though she didn't want to admit it. On the other hand, if anyone ever saw a Black being friendly with the likes of Ted Tonks...

Well, she would get more than a passive-aggressive letter from her mother.

"Maybe." she said finally. "I might."

Tonks smiled brightly, and Andromeda felt her stomach flip at the earnestness on his face. "Well, we'll be in the library. Same time as this week. See you, 'Dromeda."

Andromeda tried to glare at him, but she couldn't suppress her smile. She turned to leave, quickly breaking away from him as she made her way to the Slytherin common room.

The Halloween feast had already started, so when Andromeda arrived, the Great Hall was mostly full. She sat down next to Darius and Galea, who were holding hands as they saved her a seat. Andromeda glanced at their matching smiles, and felt herself smiling as well. "How was your day?" she asked teasingly.

"Great." Darius said, a blush rising in his pale cheeks. "What about you?"

Andromeda tilted her head. "Alright. I did some studying in the library."

"Darius, tell her that joke you told me earlier!" Galea interrupted. 

"Oh, alright." Darius said. "Andy, what do you call a wizard without a brain?"

"What's that?" Andromeda asked, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.

"A muggle!" Darius exclaimed. Galea cackled, her face splitting into a wide grin.

Andromeda choked on her pumpkin juice, glad her friends couldn't see her face. The joke hadn't even been that good, yet Galea looked like she would never be able to breathe again. She quickly swallowed the juice and laughed loudly as well, turning the conversation to the decorations. 

That night, full and sleepy from the feast, Andromeda hesitated before swallowing her potion. Was that really what her friends thought about muggles? Was that what they thought  _ she _ thought about muggles?  _ Did _ she think that about muggles?

Andromeda drained her potion, trying to put it out of her mind, letting the potion overcome her senses, lulling her eyes shut.


	6. Palm Reading

"You have one week to turn in any missing assignments from our dream interpretation." Professor Slader said, looking straight at Andromeda, who squirmed in her seat uncomfortably. "Today, we will learn what the different lines mean. Please pair up and read pages 60 and 61, then try to find the lines on your partner's hand. Do  _ not _ try to read your partner's palms. It  _ will _ end badly."

There was a commotion as people moved desks. The Ravenclaw that Andromeda normally paired up hadn't shown up to class, so she found herself sitting next to Ted Tonks.

"Hey, 'Dromeda." he greeted easily.

She scrunched up her face at him, flipping her textbook open. "Please don't call me that. It sounds like a fungus."

Tonks raised an eyebrow, but he said nothing. "I'll read the first page, and you read the second?" he asked. Andromeda nodded.

After they had struggled through the dull textbook, they compared notes. Andromeda stuck out her hand under Tonks' face, pointing down at it. "You try to find the lines on my hand first." she instructed. He took her hand in his, and Andromeda felt her heart skip a beat at how warm it was. It actually felt sort of nice...

_ No. _ she told herself.  _ He's a muggle-born. You shouldn't even be letting him  _ touch _ you.  _ Still she could do nothing to suppress the shiver that slid down her spine as he ran his finger across her palm. "Looks like you have all the appropriate lines." he said finally, releasing her hand. Andromeda felt the absence of his warmth acutely.

He stuck out his hand. "Here, you do mine." Keeping a very tight leash on her emotions, Andromeda took his hand, turning it to find the lines.

"Hold on." she murmured. "This line... it's much shorter than mine." she tapped her fingernail on his palm.

"I think that's the age line." Tonks murmured. Andromeda realized he'd leaned forward so their heads were nearly brushing. "I'm not sure."

"I'm probably reading it wrong, or your hand is bigger than mine." she murmured. "That's it, I think."

"Yes. That's probably it." Tonks agreed, though Andromeda could detect a note of worry in his voice.

"If you did not finish the reading, that is your homework." Professor Slader announced. Andromeda tensed and yanked her hand from Tonks'. The bell rang and she quickly shut her textbook and stuffed it into her bag.

"What class do you have next?" Tonks asked conversationally as he shoved his quills to the bottom of his bag.

"Potions." Andromeda responded.

"Oh, cool. I have that tomorrow. Professor Slughorn is a bit strange, isn't he?" Andromeda realized suddenly that she was engaging in small talk with a muggle-born. Earlier, she'd let him hold her hand.

What was happening?

"Listen, Tonks." she said, clearing her throat.

"Ted." he corrected.

"Tonks," she continued. "I know we studied together, and we have this class together, but that doesn't mean we're friends. I mean, I'm a Black. And you're..." Andromeda expertly wielded her words so that she was able to make his ever-present smile falter.

Without another word, she spun around, leaving him in silence. 

The next evening, Andromeda caught quaffle after quaffle on the quidditch pitch during practice. They had been focusing mostly on strategy, which didn't really apply to her as much, so she and the reserve keeper were running drills. 

They were silent the entire time, letting the game take over as they swooped back and forth, trying to score against each other. When she touched down on the ground after an hour, she was immediately approached by Janus.

"Andromeda, listen. Remember to come to the game on Saturday. Pay attention to the chasers, because whoever wins this will play us when we beat Hufflepuff. You need to learn their strategies, alright?" Andromeda nodded reassuring him that she would be there. She didn't comment on how he was absolutely certain they would beat Hufflepuff.

The first thing Andromeda saw when she entered the Slytherin common room was Darius and Galea snogging in an armchair made for one. She gagged, and one of Darius's dormmates gave her a sympathetic look. She loved them both, of course, but she'd hardly spent any time with either of them outside of class. It was a sharp contrast to the past five years, when one of them could hardly be found without the other two.

She walked to a seat at the fire, intending to dispel the cold from her bones, but she was intercepted by Bellatrix. "Hello, Bella." she greeted, images of the scene behind Honeydukes flashing through her mind.

"Hello, Andy. Come, sit and talk with me. I feel like we never talk anymore." She wrapped a hand around Andromeda's arm and forcefully led them to a sofa, pushing Andromeda down next to her. A little girl who had been reading a book on the sofa saw them and scampered off. "So, Andy," Bellatrix started, pressing her hands together. "What's this I hear about you meeting with mudbloods in the Three Broomsticks?" she grinned at Andromeda, like a hyena about to pounce on its prey.

Andromeda felt her heart skip a beat, but she kept her expression neutral. "Oh, they were staring at me. I set them straight, that's all." she said calmly, adding just a hint of malice to her voice so Bellatrix would think she'd enjoyed it.

Bellatrix threw her head back and laughed. "Of course, Andy. I was just checking. You can never be too sure. Did you hear that Sirius wants to be sorted into  _ Gryffindor?” _ she shivered dramatically. "How terrible."

Andromeda wrinkled her nose. "And here I thought he was one of the good ones."

"Bella?" they were interrupted by one of Bellatrix's friends. "We have to go make our rounds before dinner." Bellatrix nodded, throwing a look at Andromeda.

"Sorry, Andy. I have to go for prefect duties." she said, putting a triumphant emphasis on the word  _ prefect. _

Andromeda conjured up the appropriate mix of regret and envy on her face, nodding. "Of course, Bella. I'll see you later."

Bellatrix grinned and flounced off with her friend, tossing her curls behind her shoulder. Andromeda waited for her to leave the room before finally relaxing her face, letting the disgust that she felt finally show on her face. 

She ran a hand self-consciously through her own hair, the exact same to Bellatix's, except for the color. She used to be proud of it, proud to be her sister's sister. Now... she didn't know what she felt. Andromeda sighed, glad she was able to manipulate Bellatrix so easily. She supposed it was the Slytherin in her that made it so easy for her to see others' weaknesses and how to exploit them with only a handful of words.

"Andy, are you ready for dinner?" Darius was suddenly hovering over her shoulder, his hair mussed up and eyes bright. Though she'd been ravenous after quidditch practice, her conversation with Bellatrix had caused her to lose her appetite.

"No, I already ate. You two go ahead. I'm going to do my Divination homework." she lied, giving Darius a small smile. He nodded, and took Galea's hand as he left the common room. With nothing else to do, Andromeda drained her potion early, falling asleep.

The air brimmed with excitement and competition the morning of the match. Janus had reminded them all, once again, that they absolutely needed to be at the game. Andromeda walked slightly behind Darius and Galea as they plodded through the small layer of snow that had appeared overnight. She found herself seated between Janus and Galea, the latter practically sitting on Darius' lap despite there being plenty of space on the long bench.

Andromeda kept her eyes on the chasers, the way they interacted with each other, sending subtle signals to one another. Immediately, she knew Ravenclaw had the superior strategy, though Gryffindor's beaters were very good. It was an even match, though Ravenclaw won out in the end with 230 points.

Andromeda smiled to herself, imagining the expression on Hestia's face as the Gryffindor team slunk back to the changing rooms, heads bowed. 

"Did you see how the chasers—" Janus started, interrupting Andromeda's thoughts.

_ “Yes.” _ She assured. "I was watching very carefully. I'm sure we'll go over it on Tuesday, anyway." Janus nodded, looking pensive, no doubt calculating a million things at once based on the game. Andromeda could tell he was lost in his own world, so she jogged to catch up with Darius and Galea. 

"What should we do?" she asked. "The herbology essay isn't due until Friday, so I was planning on putting it off. We don't have any other homework, right?"

Darius and Galea looked at each other. "Well, we have some reading for Ancient Runes. We were going to do that." The unspoken end of the sentence hung in the air.  _ We were going to do that alone.  _ Andromeda nodded, pushing her hurt feelings deeper down inside. 

"That reminds me, I have some Divination homework." she lied. "I'm going to do that in the library. I'll... catch up with you later." They nodded, and Andromeda turned away, going to the library. She might as well just read, seeing as her best friends didn't want to spend time with her anymore.

_ I'm sure it's not like that.  _ she told herself.  _ They're just doing Ancient Runes, that's all. _

The excuse sounded weak even to her. She pushed it away as she plucked the next installment of  _ The Adventures of Yarrow the Small  _ from the shelf. The book, however, was much duller than the previous one, as sequels tended to be, and Andromeda found her attention wandering. She felt so sleepy, and the library was so warm...

_ Andromeda's family stood in front of her. Not just her sisters and parents, all of them. Generations and generations of Blacks. She recognized most of them from portraits, but the crowd was too large for her to make out every face. Standing at the forefront was Bellatrix, sneering at Andromeda. _

_ "Andromeda." she said, her voice missing it's usual mocking undertones. "You are a disgrace." _

_ "Andromeda." said her mother. "You have brought shame upon the family name." _

_ "Andromeda." She startled as she saw her little cousin, Sirius, dwarfed by the adults around him. "You are not a Black." _

_ "You will never be a Black." they all chorused. Andromeda brought her hands to her ears, trying to drown out the cachaphony of accusing voices. "Never." All at once, they stepped forward. Andromeda tried to step backwards, but the wall blocked her. _

_ They stepped forward again, and Andromeda tried desperately to escape, but they had her trapped. Finally, they stepped forward once more, and she was drowning. Drowning in the spite and contempt of them all. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't see— _

Andromeda sucked in a breath like it was water and she was the desert. She sucked in another breath, feeling like she'd been suffocating only moments earlier. But that was impossible. She couldn't stop breathing just because a dream said she was. 

Andromeda realized her breathing was going too fast, too rapidly. She forced her eyes to close and focused on breathing.

_ In. _

_ Out. _

Once she had assured her lungs that the air wasn't going anywhere, Andromeda opened her eyes. Luckily no one else was in this part of the library, so no one had seen her. Andromeda sat frozen for several minutes, trying to block out the nightmare. She'd nearly forgotten how bad they were, how terrible they made her feel.

Eventually, she realized she'd have to get up, so she carefully did so, leaving the book behind. She didn't run into anyone in the hall, and the Slytherin common room was fairly empty. In the corner, Darius and Galea were passionately snogging once again.  _ Ancient Runes homework. _ she thought sardonically, ignoring them and walking to her bed. She sat down on the mattress, curling up into a ball, and started crying.

She thought about all of her emotions, her feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, like she didn't belong anywhere. By the time her eyes were dry and she could breathe without hiccupping, she felt much better, although the nightmare still weighed her down like bludger.

Wiping at her eyes to try and remove the redness, Andromeda sat up and went to the Great Hall, ignoring her friends. She ate dinner on her own, focusing on getting the food to her mouth, and getting out of there. As soon as she was done, Andromeda exited the castle from the large doors, relishing in the cold breeze on her face.

It was too dark to see, but curfew wasn't for another hour, so Andromeda decided to stay outside. She wandered aimlessly on the large grounds, watching the lake ripple in the light from the glowing castle, shivering as the wind whispered across her exposed face. 

Before she knew it, she had spent an hour outside in the fresh air, just thinking about nothing. Reluctantly, she trudged to her common room just as curfew started, giving her dormmates short nods before quickly brushing her wind-tangled hair, drinking her potion, and going to sleep.

~

Sunday found Andromeda lazily stretched across her bed, not wanting to leave the warmth of the silver sheets. Everyone else had long gone off to breakfast, and she suspected it might be over by now, considering it was nearly noon. Finally, she dragged herself out of bed, remembering her Herbology essay.

Maybe Galea and Darius would— No, no they were probably  _ busy. _

A thought appeared in her mind, but she quickly stamped it out. There was no way she would go study with Tonks and his friends again, especially after what she'd said to him in Divination that Monday. No, he wouldn't want her there.

Despite all of her better judgement, Andromeda found herself in the library at five o'clock sharp, scanning the tables for Tonks' sandy blond hair. She spotted them near the checkout desk, and her heart skipped a beat. Suddenly, she was filled with anxiety. Should she join them? Would they let her? What if someone saw, and told Bellatrix again?

Pushing aside all of her fears, Andromeda strode across the library and sat down next to Hestia, giving her a short nod. Hestia looked surprised, but after a moment, she smiled.

"Andromeda. Come to join us?" she asked.

"Yes, I—I hope that's alright?" though she was asking all three of them, she looked straight at Tonks, who, for once, wasn't smiling.

"Of course." Tonks said finally. "We don't mind."

"Especially considering," Andromeda said, a grin growing on her face. "I was right about Ravenclaw winning the match."

At once, Hesita's smile turned into a venomous glare, and Kingsley gave her an appreciative grin, nodding wisely. "Could you repeat what she said, Hestia?" he asked, feigning innocence. "I didn't quite catch that."

Hestia turned her venomous glare to him, slamming her textbook onto the table with much more force than necessary. "Let's just get started." she growled.

Soon, they were immersed in Transfiguration, Kingsley producing a teacup for them to all practice on. Andromeda discovered that Kingsley was extremely proficient in Transfiguration, and surprisingly good at explaining the concepts to them, staying calm when they didn't understand things.

"What is the third exception to Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration?" Kingsley quizzed, looking up from his book. They all stared blankly at him. 

"It has... something to do with food?" Hestia asked.

Kingsley nodded, waving his hand, signaling her to continue. "You can't conjure food, right?" Andromeda said, the answer coming to her from the recess of her mind. Kingsley nodded, flipping the page of his book. Just as he opened his mouth, an owl came swooping into the library. Andromeda recognized it as the one belonging to her aunt and uncle, a small but energetic owl.

It landed in front of her, and she untied the letter, stroking the bird before allowing it to fly off to the owlery. Her eyes fell to the choppy, uneven handwriting on the envelope, and she froze.

To: Andromeda Black, Hogwarts.

From: Sirius Black, 12 Grimmauld Place.

Sirius' words from her nightmare echoed in her mind.  _ You are not a Black. You will never be a Black. _ Andromeda started to shake, the envelope crumpling in her hands.

"Andromeda?" someone asked. "Are you alright?" After a few moments, the words penetrated the haze surrounding Andromeda, and she opened her mouth to answer.

"No." she whispered. "No, I had another nightmare." Andromeda didn't quite know why she was confiding in them, opening herself up to them, but she felt like she needed to.

"What? The potion didn't work?" Tonks' voice was filled with worry.

Andromeda swallowed, forcing the answer from her throat. "I fell asleep here, in the library. On accident."

She felt the envelope being carefully extracted from her hand, and heard Kingsley say soothingly. "It's alright. Just focus on breathing. It's alright." Andromeda found herself relaxing into his reassuring, smooth voice, blinking away tears.

"Alright." she said. "I'm alright. Can I have the letter, please?"

"Sirius Black." Tonks read. "Is that your father?"

"No, my cousin." she said, carefully opening the envelope. "He's coming to Hogwarts next year. He wants to be the first Black to be sorted into Gryffindor." she sent a grin to Hestia, who nodded, doing a terrible job of hiding her apprehension.

She tore open the letter and started to read it.

_ Dear Andy,  _

_ I'm only writing to you because Mother and Father said I had to keep in touch with my family, and you're the only family I like. They said I have to fill this entire parchment, so I'm just going to write whatever I think of. Today, Reg and I got into an argument about quidditch and then Kreacher spilt hot soup all over me when I made Reg cry. He said it was an accident, but I don't believe him. When I learn magic, I'm going to make Kreacher pay for all of the mean things he does to me when I'm mean to Reg. I'll jinx him every day and make his ears into slugs. Do they teach you how to do that at Hogwarts? I hope they do. Maybe they only teach the Gryffindors, so you don't know. If they do, I'll tell you because I'm going to be in Gryffindor. _

_ Love, Sirius. _

Andromeda suspected that the abrupt ending to the letter was due to the fact that there wasn't any space left on the parchment. The signature was squeezed into the very last inch of parchment. She couldn't help but smile at her cousin's eagerness to learn magic and to be sorted into Gryffindor.

She showed the letter to the others at the table, who looked immensely relieved that Andromeda had stopped shaking.

"Unfortunately, they do not teach how to turn ears into slugs in Gryffindor." Hestia reported sadly. "Though I agree that they should."

"He's awfully straightforward, isn't he?" Kingsley mused, tracing the crooked handwriting.

"Well, he's ten years old." Andromeda offered. Kingsley nodded, handing the letter to Tonks. After he read it, he gave it back to Andromeda, who shoved it in her bag and made a mental note to write back to him.

"'Dromeda?" Tonks asked. Andromeda glared at him for the use of the nickname, but he utterly ignored it. "Are you... alright?"

"I..." Andromeda pondered the question. Was she  _ alright? _ "I think so. I will be." she finished softly. Tonks nodded, a sad smile on his face.

"Well, we'd better start on the Herbology essay." Kingsley said after a moment of silence had passed. "It won't write itself." Andromeda had been hoping that it would, but she pulled out her quill and parchment and started writing, trading ideas with the other three every once in a while.

It took her almost no time to write the essay with help from Hestia, Kingsley, and Tonks. She wondered how she'd been getting by doing all her homework for all these years without help from them. Compared to this, studying with Galea and Darius was like watching paint dry.

"Oh, it's dinnertime." Hestia noted, looking at the clock. Andromeda glanced up at the clock, eyes wide.

"Oh, no. I'm late for quidditch!" She sprung up and started to put away her things.

"You have quidditch at dinner?" Kingsley asked, mistified.

"It's just a discussion of the strategies used in yesterday's game. You know, so we can destroy you after we beat Hufflepuff." she looked up at the two boys, grinning cheekily. "Bye!" She hurried away, cursing Janus and his strangely timed practices.

With the help of a speeding charm, Andromeda made it to the common room in record time and quickly seeked out the team, who were gathered around a board, which Janus was enchanting to move.

"Sorry." she panted out. "I was studying in the library. Lost track of time." Janus nodded, motioning for her to take a seat.

"Just don't let it happen again." he warned, before launching into his speech once again, speaking in a language of brooms and hoops and quaffles. Andromeda was quickly lost in the hypothetical game, all of the strategies he described playing out in her head.

"Where have you been?" Daruis asked as Andromeda, finally released from the meeting. Darius and Galea were already working on their desert, which they were sharing off the same plate. Andromeda felt her stomach twist oddly at the sight.

"Janus held a meeting in the common room, sorry." Andromeda said, heaping food onto her own plate.

"No, before that. We looked for you, but we couldn't find you all day." Galea clarified.

Andromeda kept her expression lightly curious as she answered in a lie. "Really? I was in the library, reading all day. I was tucked away in the corner, so you might not have seen me."

"Oh, that must have been it." Galea said. "We thought we saw you sitting with that blood traitor Shacklebolt, but it must've been someone with the same hair as you." It was clear Galea wasn't fully convinced, and Andromeda turned to her.

"Who?" she asked blankly. "Shackle...bolt, you say?" Are they in our year?"

Once again, Andromeda's power with words saved her, and Galea's shoulders relaxed as she nodded. "Yes, he's a Ravenclaw."

Andromeda hummed politely in response, busying herself with eating


	7. The Quidditch Game

The next week, Andromeda arrived at the library early and claimed a table that was well hidden behind the shelves, waving the others over to it. They didn't seem to notice that she didn't want to be seen with them, and Andromeda had to push away a pang of guilt as she looked at the faces of her friends.

That's what they were, she realized. Her friends. Perhaps better friends than her supposed best friends, who she'd started to realize lately were overly fond of making fun of muggles and muggle-borns.

"Can I say something?" she asked as they cleaned up an hour later.

"Of course." Tonks said courteously, his hands stilling.

"I just wanted to say thank you." Andromeda said, not meeting their eyes. "For letting me study with you, even after I've been so terrible to you. Especially you." she glanced at Tonks. "Thank you for not telling anyone about the nightmares, and for being so kind to me."

She held her breath, half expecting them to laugh into her face, tell her she was weak and silly, but she found herself wrapped up in a hug instead. "Hestia?" she asked.

Tonks and Kingsley had no qualms about joining in on the hug, and Andromeda found herself sniffling lightly, blinking back tears. They exchanged watery smiles once more before leaving the library, all going to their separate common rooms.

That evening, she wrote a reply to Sirius.

_ Dear Sirius, _

_ My mother and father used to make me write letters to family as well, but you couldn't read yet, so I had to write to your parents. Can you believe it? I talked to my friend from Gryffindor, and she said that they don't teach you to turn ears into slugs, but she agrees that they should. I found a spell that makes you vomit slugs, which is almost as good, don't you think? I can't wait for you to be here next year so I can show it to you. I know you don't want to, but send Reg my love. _

_ Sincerely, Andromeda. _

Before she knew it, December was nearly on her, and Janus raised the amount of practices per week to two, then three. Andromeda couldn't say that she hated the practices, because she loved flying, but, especially as snow started to fall more frequently, she couldn't deny she'd rather be inside with a hot cup of tea.

As she bustled back inside after one of such practices, she was intercepted by Bellatrix. Andromeda didn't know when it had happened, but she'd started to dread talking to her sister, feeling apprehensive at even the sight of her.

"Hello, Andy." she said cheerfully, steering her away from the fire. Andromeda shivered, and she thought she saw Bellatrix grin harder at this.

"Hello, Bella." she said back, glancing longingly at the fire, where the rest of the team was clustered. "Did you need something?"

"Oh, Andy. Don't play coy with me. I know you've been spending time with that blood traitor and mudblood in the library." Bellatrix's grin turned into a sneer.

"Bella, I don't—" Andromeda started, trying to wrench her arm from Bellatrix's grip, as it was growing rather tight.

"Save your excuses, Andy. When we get home for Christmas break, I'm telling mother and father, and you just see what they do when they learn you've been consorting with  _ that type.” _ Bellatrix said quickly, her teeth gnashing together.

Luckily, Andromeda had thought long and hard about an excuse to tell Bellatrix, as she'd known this day was inevitable. "Bella, if you're done, I was going to explain." Andromeda said calmly. She knew it was best to stay neutral in this situation, not rile Bellatrix up anymore. "I haven't been doing any such thing. I don't know what you think you saw, or what someone else told you, but it's not true." Before Bellatrix could spit out an answer, Andromeda waved her wand subtly, murmuring  _ Confundus _ under her breath.

"Don't think you can just—" A strange, peaceful look came over her face. It was one she'd almost never seen on Bellatrix's face. "I mean to say... perhaps." Her head tilted and her grip relaxed. Andromeda used the opportunity to slide out of her grasp and sneak away, leaving Bellatrix to examine a lamp intently.

From that week on, Andromeda convinced her friends to move their studying to a spare classroom, citing the need to practice spells without having to hide from the librarian. Luckily, they didn't seem to realize she had an ulterior motive, and happily accepted the new venue.

One Sunday, she arrived at the spare room late, expecting to see the others had started without her. Instead, it was just Tonks, twiddling his thumbs boredly. He looked up, his face splitting into a grin when he saw her.

"Hestia and Kingsley said they had some sort of prefects meeting, so they'd be late. They said we should start without them."

Andromeda nodded, dropping her bag at the floor. "Did you complete the sketch for Herbology?" she asked. "I wasn't able to get to the leaves."

"Oh, perfect. I wasn't able to get to the flowers. We can look at each other's." he slid his sketch across the table at her. Andromeda couldn't help but admire how he'd managed to capture the plant expertly with only a few strokes of his quill. She hadn't seen him write much in Divination, not since they'd moved on to reading pictures of palms from the textbook, because 'reading one's own palm is a more complicated matter than to read one of a stranger.'

"You draw very well." she noted, feeling a little embarrassed as she slid her own, much messier sketch at him.

Tonks scuffed his shoe against the ground. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Andromeda replied politely, adding the leaves to her sketch.

They were finished in no time, and Andromeda asked him what subject he wanted to try next.

"Do you mind if I practice the Jelly-Legs Jinx on you? I'll reverse it immediately, of course. I just have trouble with the jinx, not the reversal.” Feeling apprehensive, Andromeda nodded, positioning herself so she wouldn't fall on any of the desks.

Taking a deep breath, Tonks positioned himself and said the incantation.

Nothing happened. 

Andromeda jumped up once, testing that her legs were not jelly. She shook her head at him. "Try again, make sure to move your wand  _ with _ the words."

Tonks nodded, and took a deep breath again. This time, Andromeda felt her legs buckle a little, but she was able to catch herself before she fell. She smiled encouragingly. "Once more." she instructed.

The third time, Andromeda's entire left leg went slack, but her right leg remained intact. She went down, her right leg collapsing under her. Tonks quickly muttered the anti-jinx, looking apologetically at her. She just grinned at him.

"Almost there!" she encouraged, readying herself to fall. On his fourth try, Tonks cast the spell perfectly, and Andromeda collapsed into a heap on the floor, grinning. He let out a cry that was equal parts worry and triumphant and performed to anti-jinx, hurrying forward to help her up.

"Sorry!" he exclaimed, holding his hand out to her. 

"Don't be." she assured. "That was excellent." she took his hand and he pulled her up, a hand landing on her shoulder to steady her. Andromeda realized that they were... quite close together.

Andromeda didn't know when her breathing had turned so shallow, only that now it was the loudest noise in the empty classroom. She felt very warm where her hand was entwined with Tonks', and at her shoulder, which he was gripping reassuringly.

Andromeda inhaled sharply as her eyes met Tonks'. They both froze, the moment crystallizing around them. 

The door swung open with a loud creak, and Andromeda sprung away from Tonks, releasing his hand. Kingsley and Hestia walked into the room, not seeming to notice the tension that hung heavily in the air.

"What are we practicing?" Hestia asked, turning to them.

Andromeda cleared her throat before answering. "Jelly-Legs Jinx. We've been working on that."

"Excellent." said Hestia, turning to Kingsley and expertly performing the jinx. He did the anti-jinx to himself and waved his wand threateningly at her, causing her to throw up a  _ protego, _ meaning that the jinx bounced off and hit Andromeda. Soon, they were engaged in a full out war, throwing harmless little jinxes and hexes back and forth.

"Technically, that was studying." Hestia summarized. "We were practicing our Defense Against the Dark Arts."

The week of the match against Hufflepuff, Andromeda could hardly think about anything but quidditch and strategies and guarding her left a little better. The match was still six days away, but she still couldn't focus on anything but quidditch, quidditch, quidditch.

Her friends noticed when she didn't answer the fourth question in a row.

"'Dromeda." Ted said, waving a hand in front of her face. "Are you okay?"

"Oh! Yes, I'm just distracted. Janus has us down for four quidditch practices this week, and that's on top of all of these assignments that are due before the holiday." Tonks nodded sympathetically.

"You don't have to work with us, if you don't want to. We're probably slowing you down." Kingsley reasoned.

"No, I'm sorry, I'll pay attention.'' She turned her focus to Hestia, who was preparing them for their oral quiz in Potions. Andromeda was traditionally decent enough at potions. Her skill had only grown since she'd started brewing her own sleeping potion ever since Madam Pomfrey had given her the recipe. It only kept for two weeks, so she had to brew a new cauldron full often enough that she hadn't really been worried about the quiz, but she let Hestia pepper her with questions.

"Ted, what potion is characterized by its mother-of-pearl sheen and—"

"Amortentia." Ted interrupted. "Everyone knows that one, Hestia."

Hestia nodded. "Just as a personal side note, what did you all smell in Amortentia the first day?"

"Parchment, candles, and freshly baked cake." Kingsley said automatically.

"Oh, I smell my mum's perfume, pumpkin pie, and something I didn't recognize. I think it was Hogwarts." Tonks explained. Andromeda heart warmed at the statement. He loved his mother enough to smell her in Amortentia. Andromeda couldn't imagine being that close to her own mother. She realized everyone was looking at her, and tried to recall the first day.

"I smelled broom polish, pumpkin pie, and the forest." Andromeda said shyly, fiddling with her sleeve. Tonks nodded and gave her an appreciative grin. She wondered what it meant that they both smelt pumpkin pie. "What about you, Hestia?"

"Oh, I think it was butterbeer, chocolate, and violets." Hestia said dismissively, already opening her mouth to ask the next question.

"Andromeda, What are three of the ingredients found in Polyjuice Potion?"

"Ah, let's see." Andromeda tapped her nails on the desk, thinking. "There's boomslang skin, a bit of the person you want to be, and..." She bit down on her lip, trying to retrieve it from her memory.

She saw Tonks smirking at her from the corner of her eye and turned to him. "Something funny?" she asked. His expression turned a little scared. "No, no, nothing's funny."

"Hmph...Bicorn Horn." Andromeda answered, still glaring at Tonks in her periphery. Hestia nodded, turning to the next page. 

By the end of the hour, Andromeda felt much more prepared for the quiz, though the hot ball of anxiety in her chest about the game had only worsened. Tonks seemed to notice, as he put a hand on her arm. "Good luck, 'Dromeda. I hope you win." 

Andromeda stared at him. "You do? But I'm playing your house."

Tonks shrugged. "Can't I hope for both of you to win?"

Andromeda gaped at him. "I—suppose."

~

The week passed in a single blink, and before she knew it, Andromeda was waking up Saturday morning. She was thankful for the potion, because she was sure that without it, she never would have fallen asleep.

"Andy, are you ready to go?" Galea hovered over her bed, beaming down at her. "It's time to destroy Hufflepuff!" Andromeda nodded and pushed herself out of bed, pulling on her robes.

"Alright, let's go."

As she walked through the common room and sat at the table, Andromeda was met with smiles and encouraging words from all of the Slytherins. Rather than alleviate her worry, it just made her even more distressed. 

Andromeda picked at her food, feeling Darius and Galea staring at her unblinkingly. "You should eat something, Andy." said Darius. "Keep up your strength."

"I'm not hungry." she growled at him. He fell silent.

After forcing herself to eat half of a slice of toast, Andromeda stood and started to walk through the empty corridors, leaving much earlier than was perhaps necessary. As soon as she exited the castle, she heard someone calling her name. "'Dromeda!"

Andromeda spun around, seeing Ted Tonks jogging after her, a folded napkin in his hand. She watched as he paused to catch his breath, then presented her with the folded napkin, which she realized was holding a muffin. "You should eat." he pressed.

Instead of feeling the flicker of annoyance she expected, Andromeda felt a warmth spread through her chest. She accepted the muffin, smiling when she noticed it was pumpkin. "How did you know I wouldn't be eating?" she asked.

Tonks shrugged bashfully, kicking the snowy grass with his foot. "I just had a feeling." 

Andromeda finished off the muffin, stuffing her hands back into her gloves as soon as she'd put the last piece in her mouth. "Thank you." she said, smiling up at him.

Tonks simply nodded. "Good luck." He gave her shoulder an awkward squeeze before turning away. Andromeda noticed that his hand lingered for perhaps a moment too long.

Andromeda had nearly forgotten her nervousness, but as soon as Tonks left, it made a reappearance. She focused on taking deep breaths, watching it puff out into the cold air in front of her. Andromeda was first to arrive at the changing rooms, but by the time she'd changed into her silver-green robes, the rest of the team had arrived.

Janus gathered them together, tapping his finger nervously against his broom. "Well," he started weakly. "You all have been training for this. I know we have a good team, much better than Hufflepuff. Let's get out there and play!"

Andromeda wasn't exactly inspired by this short speech, but she thought of Tonks wishing her good luck, and smiled as she strode onto the pitch. Before she knew it, the whistle had been blown and Andromeda was swooping to the goal posts.

She easily caught the first quaffle that came at her, tossing it back to Janus just like they'd practiced. She nearly missed the second one due to a bludger, but she managed to turn just in time to get it. The game went on for nearly an hour, Andromeda only letting in three goals, a negligible amount compared to the seventeen that the Hufflepuff keeper let in.

Finally, the Slytherin seeker found the snitch hovering slightly below Hufflepuffs goal posts, and caught it. A loud cheer rose throughout the stadium, and Slytherins madly waved silver-and-green banners and flags.

Andromeda couldn't help but do a quick lap around the pitch before setting down, relishing in the cheers. She'd done that. She, Andromeda Black, had helped Slytherin win the match. Janus embraced her, and the entire team was soon wrapped up in a bear hug.

The changing rooms were loud and boisterous, the team going over the highlights of the game, boasting their achievements. The chasers all complimented Andromeda on her exemplary keeping, causing her to smile brightly and fill with pride.

She practically skipped back to the castle, Darius and Galea in tow, raving about the game. She spotted Tonks hanging behind a group of dejected Hufflepuffs, walking slower than them.

"Oh, drat." Andromeda said, turning to her friends. "I've forgotten my keepers gloves at the changing rooms. You two go ahead, I'll just be a moment." They nodded at her, turning away and catching up with Janus, who was surrounded by a crowd of admirers.

Andromeda pretended to walk back to the changing rooms, but as soon as Darius and Galea had faded into the distance, she turned sharply. She jogged to catch up with Tonks, the wet grass bending under her feet.

"'Dromeda!" he exclaimed, spreading his arms. "Good job. That save you made, with the bludger coming at you. Even  _ I _ could tell that it was seriously complicated."

Perhaps it was the post-game high, or maybe it was the earnest twinkling of his eyes, or maybe something else altogether, but Andromeda found herself wrapping Tonks in a hug, laughing.

He laughed, and pressed up against him as she was, Andromeda felt it echo in his chest. The sound of the stragglers walking to the castle faded into the distance, and Andromeda realized that they were quite alone in the pale light of the December sun.

Slowly, she pulled away, though she didn't unwrap her arms from around Tonks. Andromeda's breath appeared in little puffs in front of her as she noticed that he was taller than her, just slightly. Enough that she had to tilt her head a little to meet his eyes.

Slowly, ever so slowly, she leaned forward and she felt him do the same, until their lips were pressed together. Andromeda froze for a moment before melting into it, wrapping her arms around his neck.

~

Studying was almost unbearable, neither Kingsley or Hestia seeming to notice the tension in the air, the way Tonks and Andromeda wouldn't meet each other's eyes. After the abnormally subdued session, Andromeda couldn't get out of the room fast enough, not even noticing that she'd forgotten her quill in the room.

She sat as far as possible as she could from Tonks in Divinations, but that didn't stop Professor Slader from forcing them to pair up for the assignment that day, informing them that they needed to read each other's palmistry essays and look over them for errors. 

Tonks sat stiffly next to her, pulling out his essay. Andromeda already knew what it said, seeing as she'd helped him write it the week before. Still, without speaking to, she accepted the essay and gave him her essay.

"Andromeda." he said gravely. "We need to talk." 

Andromeda's stomach churned at the use of her full name. "I don't know what to say." she said truthfully. "We—this can't happen. People will—"

He interrupted her. "Why do you care so much what people think?"

"It's not that, Tonks," she said softly.

"Ted." he corrected.

_ “Ted.” _ she murmured, exasperated. "I don't care what they think, but they care too much. I don't know what they—" she knew that she meant Bellatrix. "—might do. They hate people like you, Ted...they might hurt you, or me."

Andromeda could tell from his shocked silence that he hadn't even considered the possibility. When he spoke again, his voice was defeated "But I really like you." 

Andromeda found herself smiling. "I really like you too, Ted. But... I don't want to put you in danger." she blinked back tears, gripping her quill tightly.

"They don't have to know." he offered, lowering his voice as Professor Slader walked by their table. "We could keep it a secret."

Andromeda felt her heartbeat speed up, and she was filled with a fragile hope. "I... are you sure?"

His smile answered for him, and it took everything Andromeda had not to kiss him right then and there. She settled for grabbing his hand under the table, feeling sparks run up her arm. "Andromeda Black..." Ted started, his eyes dancing merrily. "Will you go to Hogsmeade this weekend with me?"

"Yes." she whispered, biting her lip to suppress her beaming smile.

During potions, Andromeda hummed a happy tune as she dumped ingredient after ingredient into her cauldron, stirring it every once in a while. Galea and Darius exchanged what they thought were covert looks, but Andromeda noticed them nonetheless.

"You're in a good mood." Galea noted. 

"I'm just happy about winning the game." Andromeda said, turning her smile to Galea. "My first game and all." Galea nodded understandingly. 

"Of course, you were brilliant." Darius said. "So, what's the plan for Hogsmeade this weekend? It's cold, so we'll have to stop by the Three Broomsticks at least twice."

Before he could continue lying out the day, Andromeda interrupted him. "Oh, it's fine. You two can spend the day together. I was planning on just browsing Honeydukes."

"Andy, we didn't—" Galea said.

"Oh, no, really. It's fine."

"We don't have to—" Darius started, furrowing his brow.

"Oh, I know you want to. You go on and have your date."

"Really, we weren't—" Galea tried, becoming desperate.

"I'm not that terrible of a friend, am I? You should go."

"I suppose if you insist..." Darius said finally.

"Really, I do. Would you hand me that essence?" The essence was passed to her, and Andromeda quickly busied herself with brewing the potion, still humming happily.


	8. A First Date

Her good mood persisted all week, Andromeda using the recent win as an excuse for the pep in her step. Slowly, the castle started to fill with decorations. She'd only stayed at Hogwarts over the break once, when she'd gotten sick and her mother didn't want her to bring it back home.

Andromeda had never admitted it to anyone, but staying at Hogwarts, sick and alone, had been more fun than all of her family Christmases combined. 

Every time Andromeda saw Ted, her face flushed as she traded secret smiles with him across the Great Hall and passed by him in corridors.

Sunday, and Andromeda's Hogsmeade visit—nay, date—couldn't come soon enough. Saturday evening, Andromeda watched a group of fourth-years playing a game of gobstones, making bets with Darius over every aspect of the game, trading knuts.

Narcissa approached Andromeda from behind, tapping her on the shoulder. "Bella wants to talk to us." she said sourly.

"What? What for?" Andromeda's stomach dropped. Had Bellatrix somehow found out about her and Ted? How? They'd only kissed once, and they'd been utterly alone. 

"How should I know?" Narcissa snapped. "Come on, let's just go."

Giving Darius an apologetic look, Andromeda stood and left the Gobstones game behind, following Narcissa to where Bellatrix was sitting in the corner.

"Bella?" Andromeda asked, working to keep her voice even. "You wanted to speak with us?"

"Hello, Andy." Bellatrix greeted. "I just got a letter from mother. She says that we'll be entertaining this Christmas. The Malfoy, Yaxley, and Lestrange families. They'll be staying for a full week, so mother said we have to be on our best behaviour."

Andromeda nodded understandingly. All three of those families had one thing in common: a pureblood son around the same age as Narcissa, Andromeda, and Bellatrix. "I see." she said, wishing more than ever that she could stay at Hogwarts for the break. "If that's all?" she asked, stepping back. Bellatrix nodded, and Andromeda turned as quickly as she could without being rude, sitting next to Darius.

"What did she want?" Darius asked bluntly.

"My mother," Andromeda worked very hard not to spit the word out. "Is mad. She wants us to get married."

Darius laughed, handing her two knuts as one of the fourth years was squirted with liquid. "Good luck." he wished.

"I'll need it." Andromeda said gravely.

~

Sunday morning found Andromeda waking up early, her stomach tight with anxiety.  _ What are you nervous for?  _ she asked herself.  _ It's just Ted. _

But it wasn't just Ted, not anymore. Now, it was  _ Ted _ , a boy that she liked. It was  _ Ted _ , a boy she was going on a date with. Andromeda agonized over what robes to wear, nevermind that they would be mostly hidden by her coat. She had to stop herself from going overboard with her makeup, scrutinizing every small inconsistency she could find. Her stomach was too agitated for her to even think about eating, so she paced her dorm for nearly an hour, glancing up at the clock every few seconds. Should she arrive early? Late? On time?

Finally, she decided on early, and at half-past 10, she wrapped herself in her coat and strode out of the castle. They'd agreed to meet at the hill outside Honeydukes, so that was where Andromeda went, plodding through the snow. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Ted, his hair speckled with snow, waiting at the top of the hill, his gloved hands clasped behind his back.

He grinned, meeting her halfway down the hill. "You're early." she breathed.

"You're early too," he noted.

"I know. I couldn't wait." she said candidly, closing the distance between them to grab his hand. "So, where shall we go?"

"I was thinking we'd go get some hot chocolate, and then go... somewhere else."

"Where's that?" Andromeda asked. 

His eyes twinkled infuriatingly. "It's a surprise."

Andromeda pursed her lips, but she allowed him to lead her down the street, keeping her head down in case someone she knew saw them. Luckily, it was cold enough that no one wanted to linger outside.

"You wait outside," he instructed. "I'll just be a moment."

Andromeda nodded, reluctantly releasing his hand and watching him disappear into the Three Broomsticks. She stood outside awkwardly, pretending to examine the window display outside of Zonko's.

"Andromeda!" a voice beside her said, causing her to flinch. It was Janus, his black dreadlocks tucked into a red knit cap.

"Hello, Janus." she said. "I'm sorry, you startled me. How are you?" she asked, despite the fact that she'd just spoken with him that week at practice.

"Alright, thanks. Are you here all alone?" he replied.

"Yes, just seeing if it's worth it to go into Zonko's." she gestured at the window display. Behind Janus, she saw Ted emerge from the Three Broomsticks, holding two cups of hot chocolate. He looked around for her. "Oh, would you look at the time." she said, looking at her nonexistent watch. "I should get back to the castle."

"What? But it's only—"

"It was lovely chatting!" she called over her shoulder, walking away from him quickly and making her way to Ted.

"Sorry." she said, accepting the warm cup from him. "Janus started talking to me."

"It's no problem." he said kindly, taking a sip of his drink.

"Will you tell me where we're going now?" she asked, looking at him questioningly.

Tonks' eyes brightened. "I know a place." he said simply, tugging her by her hand to the end of the street, up some rocks. They clambered over the rocks, slippery with the snow. Finally, they arrived at a cave. Andromeda gasped when she saw it.

Warmth emanated from a small fire, which was crackling merrily despite the cold wind. There was also a blanket on the ground, spread out by the fire. "Oh, it's so cozy!" she exclaimed, sitting down on the blanket and letting the fire's warmth fill her up, taking off her coat.

Grinning wildly, Ted sat down next to her, pulling off his gloves and holding his hands to the fire. Andromeda looked at him, then at the fire. "How did you do this?" she asked, pointing at the leaping flames.

"A magician never reveals his secrets." Ted said.

"What?" Andromeda furrowed her brow.

"It's a muggle saying," he said. "For muggle magicians." Seeing her puzzled expression, he explained. "People who pretend to do magic, but actually just use sleight of hand."

"Magician?" Andromeda tried the word. "That's so strange."

Ted laughed. "I suppose it is, looking at it that way."

They sat in companionable silence, sipping their hot chocolate, until Andromeda finally whispered. "Thank you, Ted."

"For what? The fire was just a simple spell, and I brought the blanket—"

"No, for agreeing to do this. To sneak around with me." she scooted over so she could lean on him, tilting her head up to look at him. She felt the warmth from his lips as he leaned in slowly, bringing them together for a kiss.

He tasted like hot chocolate and mint, and Andromeda couldn't get enough of it. She shifted a little so she could bring her hands up to stroke the hair at the nape of his neck, and she felt him wrap his hands around her waist, bringing them closer together.

Neither of them was feeling the slightest bit cold when they finally pulled apart, gazing into each other's eyes. Andromeda noticed that his lips were swollen, and she felt a zing of pride that she'd done that.

She leaned in for another kiss, and Ted reciprocated accordingly. After kissing some more, they talked for a while about everything and nothing, still wrapped up in each other, now-cold hot chocolates completely forgotten.

It was with a heavy heart that Andromeda finally made her way back to the castle hours later, trailing an appropriate distance behind Ted. They glanced at each other once more before finally separating, going to their respective common rooms.

~

They'd decided to skip studying the next day, as the Hogwarts Express left at eleven, and they would all be busy packing. Unfortunately, prefects didn't need to meet for this journey, so Andromeda would be expected to sit with Bellatrix. She told Ted as much as they sat in the empty classroom, hands clasped between them. She'd already told him about her mothers not so subtle plan to get her married, but he'd simply laughed it off, telling her he knew he had nothing to worry about.

She looked longingly at Hestia, Kingsley, and Ted as they entered a compartment near the front of the train, lugging their trunks with them. She wished more than anything she could be sitting with them, but Bellatrix had been absolutely adamant that she, Andromeda, and Narcissa were to sit together.

The entire ride, she prattled on about good matches and how Rodolphus Lestrange had always been interested in  _ her _ and her alone. Andromeda exchanged more than one exasperated look with Narcissa as Bellatrix talked. And talked. And  _ talked _ .

She was more than ecstatic when they finally pulled into King's Cross, where her mother was waiting for them, looking utterly disgusted with the  _ muggleness _ of it all. Bellatrix had accidently taken Andromeda's trunk, and was treating it much rougher than Andromeda would have liked.

Druella Black, never a woman of frivolous affections, greeted them with a simple nod before grabbing their hands and apparating them away. "We will convene for dinner in twenty minutes. You may freshen up in that time." With that, she turned and walked away, leaving the house elf to levitate their trunks up the stairs into their respective rooms, dropping them on their beds and leaving them to flop open.

Andromeda's heart sunk as she peered into the trunk. All of her clothes were wet, like her trunk had taken a swim. She found the reason for the leak soon enough. Her sleeping potion, which she had painstakingly divided into vials and wrapped in her socks, had leaked. Three of the vials had cracked, no doubt thanks to Bellatrix's rough treatment, leaving all of her clothes soaked through with it.

The first thing she did was carefully take out the potion that had remained intact, lining the vials up in her bedside drawer and closing it before further disaster could occur. Then, she pulled out her wand and started to clean off her robes, siphoning the spilled potion out of her clothes before dumping it all unceremoniously out the window. She would have to brew more of the potion in secret if she wanted it to last the holiday.

Andromeda sighed, cursing herself for not making extra. She glanced at the clock and saw that there were only two minutes before she was due downstairs for dinner with her parents. She quickly washed her face and tried her best to brush her hair, making her look presentable. At exactly twenty minutes, Andromeda arrived downstairs, in the formal dining room. Her mother scrutinized her, pursing her lips.

"Andromeda." she greeted. "Come, sit."

Andromeda sat stiffly in her usual place at the table. "Good evening, mother. How are you?" 

"Fine, Andromeda. How are you? Are you enjoying Hogwarts?" Her mother said back.

"Yes, mother. I'm doing well in all my classes."

"Ah, Bellatrix. Come sit, how is your seventh year so far?"

"Alright, mother. I feel like Hogwarts is accepting more mudbloods, so I'm glad to be leaving soon." Bellatrix said with a sneer.

Druella pursed her lips. "I see. I hope you're not consorting with any of these people."

Bellatrix's eyes flicked to Andromeda, but she shook her head. "No, mother."

Finally, Narcissa arrived, along with their father. Cygnus Black greeted them all with a cold glare, sitting at the head of the table just as the house elf distributed soup. "Good evening, father." Andromeda murmured.

"Good evening, Andromeda." he said, bending over to start his soup. The rest of the family followed suit, making unbearably dull conversation throughout dinner. Andromeda had to fight to keep her mind from wandering. She wondered what Ted was doing at the moment. He was probably having a happy, warm dinner with his family.

As soon as they'd finished dessert, a fruit tart, Druella dismissed them, telling them they had to be prepared to greet their guests at 11 sharp the next day, after getting their appearances approved by her.

Andromeda nodded her good night to them and went to her room, immediately pulling out a quill and parchment, and starting a letter.

_ Ted, _

_ I wish I were with you. My mother and Bellatrix kept making these terrible comments about muggle-borns at dinner, and I've only been here for a few hours. I don't know how I'll be able to last the entire holiday, especially after the other families come. _

_ Please write back soon, _

_ Andromeda _ .

She realized it had been a while since she'd contacted her cousin, and decided to write to him as well.

_ Dear Sirius, _

_ After reading your last letter, I am utterly convinced that you are a Gryffindor. I know you don't want to, but you really should apologize to Reg. It's not his fault you tripped. I'm at home for the holidays, and mother has invited the Malfoys, Lestranges, and Yaxleys. I fear she wants to set me up with one of them, but I despise all of them. I wish you were coming over for Christmas instead, so then we could talk and I could tell you about my Gryffindor friend, and this secret cave I found at Hogsmeade. I heard you and your family are going to France for Christmas. If this doesn't get to you before you leave, Happy Christmas! _

_ Sincerely, Andromeda _ .

After penning the letters, and sending them off with the family owl, Andromeda sighed and rubbed her eyes. Sitting with Bellatrix on the train, followed by dinner with her family, had left her more exhausted than quidditch practice, and she was more than ready to turn in for the night.

Andromeda drank her potion, and curled up in her bed, wishing she was anywhere else


	9. The Holidays

"Brush your hair, Andromeda. It looks like a owl's nest." Druella snapped as Andromeda presented herself the next morning, wearing dark blue robes that were not too fancy, but fancy enough to tell the guests that they were important.

Andromeda nodded and ran upstairs, running her brush through her hair laboriously, glad for the excuse not to go back downstairs. There were still fifteen minutes before the families were due to arrive, but Andromeda knew her mother would manage to find some fault in her appearance, so she'd made sure she had plenty of time to correct it.

Finally, Andromeda bounced back down the stairs. Her mother nodded at her approvingly, and Andromeda made her way to the sitting room and picked up a book so that she could put it down to greet the guests.

Narcissa and Bellatrix were already there with their own books, Narcissa twirling a blonde lock in her fingers. Andromeda gave Narcissa a tight lipped smile, sitting down just as there was a loud crack outside the house, and the doorbell rang.

Andromeda pretended to be interested in the book and smiled as the Malfoys entered, setting the book down and standing to greet them. "Mr. Malfoy." she greeted warmly, shaking his hand. "Welcome. Please, sit."

The next hour passed in a whirlwind of pleasantries and pureblood aloofness. Andromeda caught Corban Yaxley leering at her more than once, but she swallowed down the vomit and smiled coyly at him.  _ Just one week. _ she reminded herself.  _ And then you can go back to Hogwarts, back to Ted. _

Andromeda repeated the mantra in her head as the day passed, achingly slowly. Even the two letters sitting on her desk could do nothing to brighten her mood. She ripped them open, reading Sirius' reply first.

_ Dear Andromeda, _

_ Our trip to France got cancelled. Mother and father won't tell me why, but I don't really care. I didn't want to go anyway, especially with Reg. I'm sorry that you have to talk to all those people. Maybe if you pretend to be sick, they'll leave you alone. It works for me sometimes. _

_ Love, Sirius. _

Then, the letter from Ted.

_ Dromeda,  _

_ I wish I was with you too. When I got home, my sister kept on pestering me to use magic, and I had to explain to her that I'm not allowed to, and she started crying. I felt so bad, I pretended to do a spell, but I actually just switched the hand that the coin was in, like those muggle magicians I told you about. My mum was really glad to see me, and she almost didn't let me go after hugging me for almost a minute. Just remember that it's only a week, and you can go back to Hogwarts. _

_ Love, Ted. _

Andromeda's heart skipped a beat at the word  _ love. _ Was it just etiquette, or did he really mean it? She agonized over the word for a few more minutes before changing into her nightclothes. She'd decided that she would just take smaller portions of the potion rather than try to brew an entirely new batch under her parents nose, so she drained part of the vial before swinging her legs up to her bed and falling asleep.

The next morning, Andromeda was up before anyone else, except perhaps the house elf. She decided to creep downstairs and get something to eat, knowing breakfast wouldn't be for another few hours. She looked out the window, at the freezing wind whipping through the trees. It was by no means appealing, but it was much better than wandering the empty house.

Pulling on a few extra layers, Andromeda crept out the front door silently, relishing in the refreshing, crisp winter air. Andromeda wanted to go flying, but her broomstick was back at Hogwarts, and there was too high a chance that someone might look out the window and see her. Instead, she walked up and down the street, inhaling the cold scent of the wind. 

After twenty minutes, Andromeda could no longer feel her fingers. She went back into the house, avoiding the parts of the house that she knew creaked, collapsing on her bed, enjoying the few moments of peace before Narcissa barged into her room.

The next few days, Andromeda survived mostly on her now daily letters with Sirius and Ted, and her morning walks. It was the day of Christmas Eve that her routine was interrupted. As she slunk down the stairs in the morning to go for her walk, she froze when she noticed someone in the kitchen, getting a glass of water. Andromeda tried to backtrack, but they'd already seen her. They turned and her heart dropped into her throat. It was Rodolphus Lestrange.

"Good morning, Andy." he greeted. "I was just getting some water." Andromeda suppressed the revulsion at the sound of her nickname in his mouth.

"Good morning, Rodolphus." she said, not explaining why she was dressed to go out in the cold. "Why are you awake so early?"

"I must be excited for Christmas." he said cooly, not missing her evasion. "And you?"

Andromeda scrambled for an excuse, smiling placidly. "I must be excited too." she said finally.  _ Two can play this game. _

"Of course. I understand you're in your sixth year at Hogwarts. How do you like it?"

Andromeda wanted to slap him at the way he patronized her. He was only three years older than her. It wasn't as if he was some mature adult talking to a child. Instead, she said. "It's fine. I'm enjoying my classes."

"Hm." he drained his glass of water. "Well, if you'll excuse me." he stepped forward and Andromeda shifted to allow him to pass by, shivering when his arm brushed hers.

That night, the conversation turned to Voldemort. Andromeda stayed as silent as she could throughout the conversation, trying to focus on the delicious feast in front of her as her own family sung the praises of a man who hated those who were not like him, including her boyfriend.

Bellatrix boasted about her plans to join him after her graduation, and Rodolphus watched her admiringly. Andromeda felt sick.

"What about you, Andy?" Bellatrix asked. "Will you join him after school?"

Andromeda felt her heart stop as everyone looked at her. "I don't know, Bella. I'm planning on getting married—" she forced herself to look at Corban, for just long enough that everyone at the table saw. "—but I don't know about after that."

The small gesture had sated everyone at the table, and they turned away from her, Corban somehow leering at her even more than before.

The next morning, almost everyone was awake with Andromeda, ready to open presents. They gathered in the sitting room with cups of tea, opening presents one by one. Andromeda received some perfumes and some necklaces, and a single bracelet. Her mother had assured her that she would organize for everyone to receive something nice from 'Andromeda,' and she watched with a detached interest as they all opened pocket watches from her. Finally, everyone had opened their gifts and there was just a single, badly wrapped present left.

"What's that?" Narcissa asked, pointing to it. Bellatrix snatched it up greedily. Her face fell as she read the tag.

"It's for Andy. From Sirius." She announced, throwing it at Andromeda dismissively.

Andromeda peeled back the wrapping gently, revealing a crude drawing of a house elf with slugs for ears, painted red and gold. Before she could stop herself, Andromeda snorted.

"What's that?" Bellatrix asked. "Is that Kreacher?"

"It's an inside joke." Andromeda explained, setting it on the ground.

"Since when do you have inside jokes with Sirius?" Druella asked, leaning forward.

"We've been writing as of late, that's all." Andromeda said evasively, pocketing the drawing for herself. "Should we move to the dining room and begin breakfast?"

Her diversion worked, and they were soon tucking into a feast of eggs and toast, tomatoes and beans.

After lunch, the other three families packed their things and left, cordially thanking Druella and Cygnus. When Rodolphus stopped to say goodbye to her, Andromeda felt a shiver run down her spine. "It was good to see you, Andy." he said, embracing her stiffly. She reciprocated, ignoring Bellatrix's jealous glare.

As soon as they were gone with a crack, Andromeda released a deep breath she felt like she'd been holding for a week. "Dinner will be in four hours." Druella told them. "You may do what you please until that time."

Andromeda immediately turned and ran up the stairs, scribbling out a thank-you note to Sirius before turning to the gift she'd gotten from Ted. It had arrived yesterday, but Andromeda had wanted to wait until Christmas to open it.

Taking a deep breath, Andromeda unwrapped the gold and white paper, revealing a delicate green hair clip, along with a note. _ I noticed you're always pushing your hair back, so I figured you could use something like this. I hope you like it. _

Smiling uncontrollably, Andromeda lifted the hair clip to her head, using it to tie up her hair. The fact that he'd noticed that she was always pushing her hair back filled her with a warm, buzzing feeling. Just as she was writing a letter in response, describing her day and the gift from Sirius, another letter arrived from Ted.

_ Dromeda, _

_ Thank you so much for the chocolate and the book. I gave some of the chocolate to my sister, and she said it tasted a million times better than muggle chocolate. My mum was very amused when I showed them Babbity Rabbity. I can't believe that these are the stories you grew up reading. I can't wait to show you some of the muggle fairy tales like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Only two more days! _

_ Love, Ted. _

Andromeda grinned as she reread the letter, her eyes lingering once again on the word  _ love _ . It was probably just politeness. He probably signed all of his letters that way. 

Andromeda kept the clip in her hair that night at dinner, not wanting to take out the gift. 

"We'll be visiting Diagon Alley tomorrow." Druella announced. "Narcissa, you need to get those robes fixed. You look like a man. Andromeda and Bellatrix, you may do any other shopping you need to do, as long as you meet back with us at four o'clock. Is that understood?"

"Yes, mother." They chorused, nodding.

"And Andromeda?" Druella added.

"Yes, mother?" She asked.

"Take that clip out of your hair. It's unbecoming. Where did you get it?"

Andromeda raised her hands to her hair, pressing down to release the clip. "It was a gift from Galea." she said. "I think about my birthday last year."

"Galea needs to acquire a better taste." Druella said, pursing her lips. Andromeda wanted to yell that the clip was beautiful, and she didn't care what her mother thought, but she just took a bite of her food. It tasted like ash in her mouth.

~

Andromeda passed her day at Diagon Alley browsing the different shops, and before she knew it, she was sitting down for her final dinner with her family. At the end of dinner, when her sisters climbed up the stairs, Druella told Andromeda to stay back.

"I wish for you to stop your correspondence with Sirius." she instructed. "He is growing up to be a blood traitor and a disgrace to the Black name. I do not wish for you to be corrupted by his influence, my daughter."

"If you wish, mother." Andromeda nodded cooly, though she knew that she would be doing no such thing. "Good night."

"Good night, Andromeda."

Andromeda couldn't help but feel incredibly relieved as she waved goodbye to her mother at Kings Cross through the smoke. Her time back home had been nothing short of misery, listening to her family insult muggle-borns and muggles for a solid week.

Unfortunately, she had one more trial to sit through, Bellatrix's speeching on the train. Andromeda gazed longingly out the window the entire time, watching the countryside pass by in the grey light from the cloud-covered sky.

Andromeda sprung up as soon as the train stopped, leading an equally annoyed looking Narcissa out of the compartment. She scanned the crowd, but couldn't make out any familiar faces in the dense crowd. Her heart sunk as she realized that she would have to wait until to tomorrow to be able to see Ted, Hestia, and Kingsley. She dragged her feet, falling behind the crowd and hoping that by some miracle, she would be able to spot someone she knew.

Andromeda startled when an arm shot out from a dark corridor and grabbed her. She struggled desperately until she realized whose hand it was.

"Ted?" she hissed, squinting in the dark.

"Dromeda!" he greeted brightly. she couldn't see his face in the darkness, but she had no doubt that he was grinning as widely as she was. Andromeda wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a hug, breathing in his familiar warmth.

"I missed you." she said, her voice muffled by his shoulder.

"I missed you too, Dromeda." he whispered back.

She refused to let go of him, but eventually, he extricated himself from her grip. "We have to get to the feast," he said gently. "Before people get suspicious."

Andromeda nodded, finally releasing him. "I know. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll see you tomorrow." he whispered back, gently kissing her on the forehead before dashing back into the main corridor. Andromeda waited for a few seconds, collecting herself before also walking out of the corridor, which was almost completely empty.

She took her usual seat with Darius and Galea, who were looking for her anxiously. "Where have you been?" Galea asked. "We thought something happened to you."

"Oh, I'm fine. I was just using the bathroom." she looked away as Headmaster Dippet started his speech, wishing them all a good term and the such. Andromeda couldn't help but let her gaze wander to the Hufflepuff table, to a certain blonde boy who was fiddling with his silverware. She smiled fondly at him as the food appeared on the table and he began to dig in.

"So, when's the wedding?" Darius asked, startling Andromeda out of her thoughts.

"What?" she asked, panicked. "W—wedding?"

"With Yaxley. Or was it Lestrange that your mother set you up with?" Darius asked, grinning. 

"Oh, ha, ha." she mocked, relief flooding through her that Darius hadn't caught her looking at Ted. "I will have you know that I have zero interest in Lestrange, and if I did, Bella would cure me of it very quickly." She glanced down the table, to where Bellatrix was sitting, making sure she hadn't heard anything.

Darius snorted, glancing at Bellatrix. "That she would."

Galea rolled her eyes and launched into a long-winded description of her holiday to China, leaving Andromeda no more space to talk. She didn't mind this, as it gave her time to gaze longingly at the Hufflepuff table, occasionally locking eyes with Ted and smirking at his blush. 

The next day was Wednesday, and Andromeda tapped her quill nervously through all her classes, anticipating the end of her lessons. That morning, Ted had brushed up against her, putting a note in her hand. She'd pretended to be angry with him for invading her space as she pocketed the note.

_ Meet me in the empty classroom after lessons. _

Finally, after nearly endless droning from the teachers, Andromeda found herself walking to the empty classroom. She'd told Galea and Darius she was going to get a snack, and doubled back when they were out of sight. After waiting for someone to walk down the corridor, Andromeda slunk into the classroom, closing the door behind her softly.

"'Dromeda." Ted grinned as he grabbed her hands, pulling her close.

"Ted." she breathed happily, a blush rising in her face.

"I brought something." he produced a thin, shiny book from behind his back.

Andromeda took it, reading the cover. "Grimms Fairy Tales?"

"They're muggle fairy tales, like I said in my letter."

Andromeda opened the book, running her hand over the illustrations. "Cinderella." she read, the word tasting strange in her mouth. "What is that, a disease?"

Ted laughed, and Andromeda felt her chest fill with warmth. "It's a name." He sat on the floor, leaning on the wall. He patted the floor next to himself. "Here, come sit. I'll read it to you."

Andromeda sat on the floor next to him, resting her head on his shoulder. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but she was more than happy, especially as he started to read, his steady voice transporting Andromeda to a world of pumpkin carriages and pricked fingers.

They stayed on the floor, poking fun at the stories for over an hour. Finally, Andromeda stood and brushed off her clothes, holding her hand out to pull Ted up from the floor.

Andromeda brought her hand up to cup Ted's face, pulling him to her and kissing him tenderly. "Same time tomorrow?" she asked. He nodded eagerly, and slipped out of the room.

Andromeda waited a few beats, listening for footsteps, before walking out of the room with an air of confidence that would ensure that no one would question her. The next day passed similarly, as did Friday. 

On Saturday, Andromeda saw an owl swooping at her and she smiled when she saw that it belonged to her aunt and uncle. Sirius' latest letter was thicker than normally, and Andromeda felt a hard object inside the envelope. She tore it open, pulling out a chocolate frog, along with a short note.

_ Dear Andromeda, _

_ Mother and father said that my drawing wasn't a good enough gift and that it was rude that I only gave you a gift, so here's something you can split with the rest of your family. _

_ Love, Sirius. _

Andromeda smiled, pocketing the chocolate frog for herself. She had a feeling her cousin wouldn't mind if it didn't make its way to the rest of her family.


	10. A Multitude of Silencing Charms

The Gryffindor-Slytherin match drew closer as January was replaced by February. The friendly animosity that had always existed between Hestia and Andromeda rose to a height the week before the match. "If you play as well as you study, the match is in the bag." Hestia said mockingly, dodging the crumpled up parchment Andromeda launched at her.

"Ladies—" Kingsley tried desperately.

Andromeda cut him off pointing a finger at Hestia. "If your house can play as well as they can practice modesty, I won't even have to show up to win!" she snickered, ducking as Hestia's arm shot out at her.

"If  _ you— _ " Hestia started, but she was quickly cut off by Kingsley with a silencing charm.

Andromeda laughed. "Well, well, well looks like—" she felt her mouth go numb, and her eyes went wide when she realized that she'd been silenced as well.  _ Kingsley, you prat. _ she tried to say.  _ Take this off right now. _ No sound came out.

Kingsley got the general meaning, however, and he shook his head. Andromeda turned to Ted, looking at him pleadingly. He raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, I want to study." he said diplomatically. Andromeda rolled her eyes and squeezed his hand, which she was holding under the table, a little too hard.

"That's better." Kingsley said, picking up his quill once again. The two boys studied back and forth for a while, ignoring Hestia and Andromeda, who had resorted to kicking each other under the table.

Eventually, the charm wore off, and both Hestia and Andromeda pulled their wands out and pointed them at Kingsley, temporarily united by a common enemy.

Ted, who'd been watching all of this with a faint, amused smile, found himself in the center of the conflict. "What do you think, Ted? Should we silence him, let him know how it feels?"

Ted blanched, his eyes flickering rapidly between his girlfriend and his friend. Andromeda gave him a hard glare, communicating with her expression that he'd better choose her or  _ else _ . He sighed and nodded. "Yeah, go ahead."

"Ted! What are y—" the rest of Kingsley's sentence was cut off as noise stopped coming out of his lips. He glared at them, but Hestia and Andromeda just smirked back triumphantly. Ted squirmed uncomfortably in his seat, looking guilty.

"Well." she said finally. "I don't think we'll be doing much more studying, so might as well call it a day." He started to pack his things, waving his wand to set the desks they'd pushed together straight. Andromeda dropped her quill, lingering behind Hestia and Kingsley as she pretended to search for it on the floor. As soon as the two of them were gone, Andromeda grinned up at Ted cheekily.

"Thanks." she said.

Ted shrugged helplessly. "You're welcome, I guess. I feel bad." Andromeda was struck suddenly with how  _ good _ he was. She stood and brushed herself off, her smile turning genuine.

"It's not your fault." she reassured. "We would have done it anyway, no matter what you said. Are you ready to go?"

He nodded, giving her a short goodbye kiss before stepping out of the classroom, dragging his bag behind him. Andromeda rocked back and forth on her feet for a few seconds, guilt gnawing at her. Finally, she sighed, and left the classroom the way she'd seen Kingsley and Hestia go. She caught up with them quickly, and whispered the countercurse under her breath from behind a corner, smiling at Hestia's shocked expression when Kingsley's deep voice interrupted her gloating.

When Andromeda arrived at dinner a few minutes later, she found Darius and Galea had saved her a seat. She sat down next to them, pulling the pumpkin juice towards herself. "Good evening." she greeted.

"Evening, Andy." Galea said back flatly. "Where have you been all day? We were looking for you."

The lie slipped easily out of her mouth. "I was at the library studying. Then I went to the common room, and then I had quidditch practice, and then I went back to the common room."

Actually, she'd been wandering the grounds with Ted, stepping carefully onto the frozen lake, but they didn't need to know that. At least the quidditch practice part wasn't a lie. "Oh." Galea said shortly, surprised by the confidence in Andromeda's voice. "I see."

Andromeda grinned. "What did you two lovebirds do?"

"Oh, nothing." Darius said. "Just played gobstones mostly—what's that in your hair?" he prodded her hair, running his finger down the hair clip. She'd taken to wearing it almost everywhere, not that her  _ friends _ had noticed until now. 

"Oh, it was a Christmas gift from my mother." she explained, pulling it out of her hair to show. They both  _ oohed _ and  _ aahed _ appropriately at the way it caught the light, and Andromeda felt a surge of satisfaction. She pinned her hair back up, turning to her food.

"Andy." Galea said after a while. 

"Yes, Galea?"

"I've—" Darius elbowed her not-so-discreetly. " _ —we've _ noticed you've been acting a bit odd lately. I mean, you disappear after lessons almost every day, we hardly talk anymore, except in class, and you never study with us anymore." Galea sped up as she went along, as if she'd been bottling up these thoughts for a very long time.

Andromeda blinked. In all honesty, she hadn't really expected her friends to notice her behaviour, much less bring it up. She laughed, her mind working quickly. "What do you mean we hardly talk anymore? We're talking right now, aren't we? And I tell you where I'm going every time I 'disappear.' I really am sorry if I've been absent lately. I've just been so focused on beating Gryffindor. I'm sorry. I promise to spend more time with you, if that’s what you want." she gave the lie all the sincerity she could muster, smiling hopefully at them.

Andromeda saw Darius' tense shoulders drop. The lie had worked. "We'll, you'd better beat them, then." was all he said, nodding sagely. Andromeda felt the tension in the air disappear all at once, and laughed, turning to her food once more as they talked about more and more imaginative ways to beat Gryffindor.


	11. Caught

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for depictions of violence.

Andromeda's heart sank as the whistle was blown and the Gryffindor side erupted in cheers. The Gryffindor seeker had caught the snitch, and Slytherin, who were only forty points ahead, had lost soundly. They walked dejectedly back to the changing rooms. Even Janus, who always had something to say, was sadly silent.

As soon as she changed, Andromeda made her way to the empty classroom, where she'd agreed to meet Ted after the game. As soon as she walked in, he wrapped her in a hug. "You were incredible." he said comfortingly. "You didn't let a single quaffle in."

Andromeda nodded. It was true, but they'd still lost. Maybe if she'd focused harder, watched the seeker more closely... She sighed and extricated herself from Ted's grip. "I don't know  _ how _ I'll face Hestia tomorrow." she groaned.

Ted chuckled, squeezing her hand tightly. "I'll see you later." she whispered, skulking out of the door so she could be miserable with the rest of the team.

Galea and Darius had similar comments, complimenting her on her excellent keeping and reassuring her there was nothing she could have done. 

The next day, Hestia had arrived early, no doubt just so she could beat Andromeda there. "Hello, Andromeda." she crooned, sounding remarkably like Bellatrix. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, Hestia. How are you?"

"I'm fabulous. Do you know why?" Hestia looked like she was about to explode with excitement.

Andromeda sighed. "Why?"

"BecauseGryffindorwonandSlytherinlost!" she cackled maniacally while the three of them watched her, concerned. Hestia managed to sneak in a reference to Gryffindor's win every few seconds, and by the time that they'd ended the study session, Andromeda was ready to hex Hestia in to oblivion. The only thing stopping her was Ted, who was rubbing his thumb in circles on the back of her hand soothingly.

The next week, when Andromeda arrived at the classroom, she was relieved to find only Ted there, neatly arranging his parchment and quills on a desk. "'Dromeda!" he greeted. "Kingsley and Hestia have another of those prefect meetings, so they won't be here for twenty minutes. We can use the time to do Divination, if you'd like."

Andromeda nodded, dropping her bag on the ground wordlessly. Ted furrowed his brow, stepping forward to her. "'Dromeda? What's wrong?"

Andromeda sat at the desk wearily. "You know I've been spending more time with Galea and Darius, right?" He nodded. "Well, I've started to notice how  _ horrible _ they are. They're terribly rude to anyone who isn't a Slytherin, and all of their jokes are based on making fun of others. I realized... did I used to be like that?" she looked up at him.

He shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I wouldn't say that you were..."

"Ted." she intoned.

"Alright, maybe you were, but you aren't anymore, and that's what's important." he said finally, sitting at his own desk. Andromeda smiled at him, her mood lifting slightly. 

"Alright, if you say so." she said, flipping open her star chart. "Now, what does it mean for red-haired people that Neptune is in alignment with Venus tomorrow?"

With both of their minds working together, they were finished in no time, and Kingsley and Hestia still hadn't arrived. "I don't want to start without them." Ted said, blowing on the ink on his star chart. Andromeda watched his lips with a special interest.

"Well, there is something else we could do to pass the time," she offered, rising from her seat to lean forward on Ted's chair, her hands resting on the arm rests. She leaned forward until their lips were all but touching, pausing to wait for his permission.

He closed the gap, moving his lips against hers. Andromeda stepped forward, seating herself on Ted's lap and raising her hands to wrap around his neck, playing with his hair. His hands went to her waist, steadying her. She smiled at his familiar, warm hands on her waist, and leaned forward some more, her unclipped hair spilling over her shoulders.

"What are you  _ doing?” _

Andromeda stiffened, pulling away from Ted slowly and turning to the doorway, where Hestia and Kingsley stood, gaping at them. "Studying?" she tried. 

Ted coughed loudly, his face turning red. Andromeda carefully, pushed herself off his lap, closing the door with a flick of her wand. Luckily, no one had walked by and seen anything.

"Ah—okay." Andromeda said diplomatically. "So, we're dating."

Kingsley furrowed his brow while Hestia tried to fight the grin spreading across her face. "How long?" he asked.

"Since December." Ted answered from his chair. 

Hestia could no longer contain her glee, and she burst into giggles. They all looked at her strangely as she tried to compose herself. "I'm sorry." she gasped. "I'm happy for you, really. But why didn't you tell us?"

Ted and Andromeda exchanged a grave look. "My family..." she started. "If they ever found out, I don't know what they'd do. To me, or to Ted." Hestia's giggles stopped suddenly and she looked at them, aghast.

"What?" she asked. "You're not serious?" 

"Please, don't tell anyone." Ted implored, ignoring her question.

"We won't." Kingsley assured, taking a seat. "Let's get started. We have to master the banishing charm, and start the potions essay."

"Kingsley's definitely going to be Head Boy." Hestia informed them as they sat down.

"Really?" Ted asked. "Congratulations!"

Kingsley looked down. "It's not set in stone yet," he said quickly. Hestia scoffed.

"Look at the competition! You've got it in the bag." she countered.

"Well, if Kingsley is as good as being prefect as he is at eating sticky toffee pudding, it's no competition." Andromeda joked, referring to the past Tuesday.

"Excuse me?" Kingsley asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, the entire Great Hall saw you." Hestia joined it. "I didn't know it was possible to consume seven servings of it." 

Kingsley, whose default state was emotionless, looked rather flustered. "They only serve it once or twice a year! I was just trying to get my fill!" 

"Your fill, or the entire school's fill?" Hestia asked.

"Oh, look who's talking, miss mashed potatoes!" Kingsley exclaimed.

"Mashed potatoes were Merlin's favorite food!" Hestia exclaimed.

"I'm fairly certain that's not true." Ted said calmly.

"And I haven't even mentioned you and your pumpkin pie!" Kingsley clapped back.

Ted's cheeks pinked. "Don't—" Andromeda started, but she was interrupted by Kingsley, who was on a roll now.

"Don't pretend you don't do the same!" he pointed at Andromeda. "I've seen you with your pumpkin pie, acting like it's your child!"

Andromeda gaped. It was true that she did get a little passionate about her pumpkin pie sometimes, maybe a little  _ too _ passionate, but she didn't—

Ted started to laugh. "This is ridiculous." he gasped, and soon, they were all in stitches, laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of it all.

"Let's just agree that we all get a bit strange around our favorite foods, alright?" Andromeda offered once they'd collected themselves.

They all nodded, and soon they were at work studying.

As she walked down the hallway, she heard her name being called from behind her. She stopped, turning ato see Hestia and Kingsley walking quickly to catch up with her. "Andromeda, wait." Kingsley said.

"Yes?" she asked. "Did I forget something?"

"No, we just wanted to have a word with you." Hestia said, trading a look with Kingsley.

"Alright," Andromeda agreed, already seeing where this was headed.

"We just want to say that it's great that you and Ted are seeing each other," Kingsley started. 

"But," Hestia interjected. "we're concerned about what you said, about your family."

"If anything happens to him, we will hold you responsible." Kingsley said coldly, seeming to grow in size in front of her.

Andromeda resisted the urge to step back and nodded. "I understand." she said resolutely.

Kingsley stared at her for a moment longer, but Andromeda kept his gaze. Finally, he gave a short nod and stepped away. "Alright, I'll see you next week."

~

That Wednesday, Andromeda slipped Ted a note when she was walking out of Charms.

_ Meet me at the Astronomy Tower at midnight. _

Andromeda's heart beat erratically as she waited at the top of the Astronomy Tower. She knew she was asking Ted to break curfew, so she wasn't completely sure he would come. Her worries dissapeared when she heard his careful steps rounding the stairs, his puffy breath deafening in the silent night.

"Ted!" she greeted, taking his hand and dragging him to the edge of the tower. "I'm glad you came."

"Of course, 'Dromeda." he assured. "But what are we doing here? Now?"

"You know that meteor shower the professor mentioned in Astronomy?" she asked.

He nodded, realization starting to dawn on his face.

"Well, it starts in three minutes, and I wanted to watch it with you." she wrapped her arm around his waist, snuggling into his warmth. She saw him grin in the dim light.

They stayed leaning against each other for a few minutes, gazing up at the starry sky, until finally, Ted gasped and pointed at a streak of light. It was followed by another streak, then another, until the sky was dancing with lights. It was over too soon, and Andromeda felt a pang of sorrow as she watched the streaks fade back into the inky darkness.

"That was amazing." Ted whispered in awe. Andromeda nodded against him, still looking up at the sky, wishing the gorgeous streaks would come back.

"Oh, look," Andromeda said, pointing at a familiar, cloudy shape in the stars. "There's Andromeda." She'd been trained from birth to know how to find her namesake in the sky. She also knew how to find Bellatrix, but she decided not to mention it.

"It's beautiful." Ted marveled, his eyes tracing the sky. He looked at her. "Just like you."

Andromeda should have been disgusted by the cheesiness of it all, but she felt a gooey happiness spread through her, and she looked down, fiddling with the hem of her glove. Ted put a finger to her chin and tilted her head back up, leaning in to kiss her, dispelling the chill around her.

They finally, reluctantly, pulled apart. "We should go back to our dorms." Andromeda whispered, glancing at the stairs. "Try to get more sleep."

Ted nodded, but neither of them moved. In the distance, a loud howl came from the forbidden forest and a flock of birds rose from the trees. Both Andromeda and Ted startled, accidently jumping away from each other. When nothing else happened, they both laughed softly, glancing at the now-still forest. Swinging their hands between each other, they walked back down the stairs, trying to move quietly against the stone floor.

"Where's the Hufflepuff common room?" Andromeda asked in a low whisper. "I want to walk you there."

"Near the basement." he whispered back.

Andromeda nodded, staying close to him as they made their way through the dimly lit corridors, until finally they were standing at the stairs that led down to the basement. Ted nodded to the stairs. "It's just down here."

"Alright." Andromeda whispered, giving his hand a squeeze before stepping away. "Good night."

"Good night, 'Dromeda." he breathed into the night air, watching her turn away and creep down the corridor.

~

In March, Raveclaw beat Hufflepuff, meaning that the final game would be between Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Kingsley seemed completely confident in Ravenclaw's impending victory, not deigning to engage in competitive banter with Andromeda. Luckily, Hestia was more than willing to do it for him, and soon she'd insulted everything from Andromeda's smell to her potion-making skill. On Ravenclaw's behalf, of course.

"Meet here after I've won the game?" Andromeda asked Ted, sending a glare to Hestia.

"Alright, but just remember, win or lose—" he started.

"Oh, stop trying to make her feel better about how badly she plays, Ted." Hestia interrupted loudly. Andromeda glared at her, but quickly turned away. She wrapped Ted in a short hug before ducking out of the classroom.

Janus had scheduled practices every day that week, so she didn't see Ted at all, except in a few of her lessons. Every night, she collapsed onto her bed after drinking her potion, and fell asleep, her head full of quidditch strategies.

Andromeda felt like her stomach was full of bees as she woke up Saturday morning. The other girls in her dorm not-so-secretly watched her, examining her for any weakness. Slytherin hadn't won the cup in three years, so the victory would be even sweeter.

She forced herself to eat a few bites of egg, but found she couldn't stomach anymore. She saw that her teammates were having a similar problem, all sitting stiffly while nearly the entire table watched them.

Finally, Janus snapped. "Let's go." and they stood up like a well oiled machine. The Slytherin team cheered and hollered as they marched out of the Great Hall, earning glares from the Ravenclaw table.

"Remember, we have to win by more than forty points." Janus reminded them again, looking mostly at the seeker. "Forty points." Someone poked their head into the changing room, and they all looked at each other.

It was time.

Andromeda released a steadying breath as she took her place in front of the goalposts. It wasn't windy at all, which was good, but the sun shone brightly beside her, causing a blind spot in her vision. She prayed for a cloud to come and blot it out, but the sky was an endless blue.

The first quaffle that came at her was weak, and probably wouldn't have made it into the goalpost even if Andromeda hadn't caught it. She tossed it back to Janus, watching as he dodged a bludger, but missed the quaffle.

Her eyes darted back and forth as the quaffle was passed back and forth, snatched from team to team. She missed a quaffle when the chaser came at her from the right, her fingers just brushing it. She felt her stomach drop as the scoreboard changed.

The chasers quickly realized that her right side was weak, and started shooting exclusively from there, scoring four more times. Andromeda's only consolation was that the Slytherin chasers had realized the same thing about the other keeper, and were exploiting it as well.

Over two hours passed, the two teams staying within thirty points of each other. Andromeda saw both seekers desperately scouring the field, but the bright sun was doing them no favors. She cursed as she let in another goal from her left, reminding herself to keep an eye on the beaters, who'd launched a bludger at her at the last second.

Suddenly, the pitch exploded in noise. The Slytherin seeker had spotted the snitch—they were zooming down the pitch to get it—reaching out an arm—yes! A hand wrapped around the snitch and raised it triumphantly. The Slytherin side exploded in cheers and Andromeda felt fireworks start exploding in her chest.

She let out a loud  _ whoop _ and nearly crashed into the ground to join the rest of the team, who were jumping up and down and hugging each other, tears in their eyes. She spotted Ted in the crowd, smiling proudly at her, and without thinking, she ran towards him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing him full on the mouth.

He froze in shock, but wrapped his arms around her, twirling her around happily. She felt like she could do anything, like the entire world was in her hands, she could—

"Get your filthy hand off my sister, you mudblood!" Andromeda saw a jet of light come at her, and felt herself being blasted away from Ted. Andromeda felt herself being pulled up off the ground, and she looked around wildly, trying to figure out what had happened.

Standing in front of her was a fuming Bellatrix, her wand pointed at the spot where Ted and Andromeda had been only moments ago. Slowly, Bellatrix turned her wand to Ted, who was also getting up.

"No!" Andromeda shrieked. "Bella, please stop. He's not—you can't—"

Bellatrix ignored her, and shot a curse at Ted. He screamed as he was blown back once again, clutching his stomach. Immediately, a group of Hufflepuffs, Gryffindors, and Raveclaws started to throw curses at Bellatrix. Slytherins jumped to her aid, and soon the air was thick with curses. 

Andromeda tried to stumble to Ted, but she felt herself being dragged away. She struggled desperately, sobbing, but she was overpowered. She didn't know how long she struggled for, only that she didn't—couldn't—stop.

She locked eyes with him as he surveyed the carnage. Dozens of students were dueling, spitting insults at each other. And in the middle of it all, Ted and Andromeda looked at each other, saying a hundred things without speaking at all.

Eventually, the professors hurried their way down onto the pitch, separating students and handing out detentions. Andromeda felt herself being roughly pulled away. She doubled her efforts, thrashing wildly, but whoever was dragging her was too strong. She realized later that it had been Darius and Galea keeping her from Ted, holding her back.

As soon as Darius and Galea dragged her into the common room, they threw her into an armchair. She tried to stand up and push past them, but Bellatrix wrapped her hand around Andromeda's arm, nails digging painfully into her skin. "Sit down." she hissed, pushing Andromeda back into the chair.

Bellatrix glared down at her sister, her eyes smoldering with hate. Andromeda glared back with the same intensity. Behind her, Galea was looking at Andromeda like she was lower than dirt under her shoe, while Darius looked like he'd never seen her before.

"What," Bellatrix spat out. "Were you doing with that  _ filth?” _

"He's not filth. He's better than you'll ever be, better than any of you will ever be." She jabbed a finger at the crowd of Slytherins, who were watching the proceedings unashamedly. "Just because you're such a bigot, Bella—"

_ Slap. _

There was a sharp pain on her cheek, and Andromeda sucked in a breath, raising a hand to her cheek. She saw Narcissa start to cry, shaking with silent sobs.

"Bella?" Andromeda asked, her voice vulnerable. She'd known her sister was prone to violence, but she'd never in a million years dreamed she would ever hit Andromeda.

"You're pathetic." Bellatrix snarled. "No better than that muggle slime." With that, she turned around and strutted out of the common room, no doubt to write to their mother.

The common room was eerily silent for a moment after the door slammed shut behind Bellatrix. Andromeda jumped out of her seat and flung herself at the door while everyone was unmoving, but she was quickly overpowered and, with the help of her dormmates, wrestled to her bed, still in her quidditch robes with her hair in a braid. They all watched over her, thwarting every one of her escape efforts.

Andromeda soon realized that she wasn't going to be able to get out, and she felt the anger drain out of her, replaced by an overwhelming grief. She curled up and sobbed into her bed, wondering how the day had gone from so wonderful to so terrible.


	12. The Aftermath

_ Andromeda opened her eyes to a blinding light, and shut them quickly. After a moment, she peeked them open again. Slowly, her eyes adjusted to the light and she opened them fully. Someone tapped her on her shoulder, and she spun around. She gasped when she saw her own face staring back at her. _

_ The other Andromeda beckoned her, and Andromeda followed her without a second thought, her feet making no noise against the bright white floor. She blinked, and suddenly she and the other Andromeda were somewhere else. She squinted, making out a dark forest with trees that stretched far into the clouds above them. _

_ All at once, the trees started growing, spindly branches reaching out to wrap around Andromeda, holding her out far above the forest floor. The grip of the branches started to grow uncomfortable as they thickened, squeezing her. She felt her ribs snap and howled in pain. Through the tears in her eyes, she could see someone offering her a hand. If she could just reach the hand... _

_ Andromeda raised her arm to the sky, her fingers dancing through the air desperately as she tried to grab onto the hand, screaming as the tree's grip grew tighter still. Finally, her fingertips brushed the hand, but it was too late. Her final ribs snapped, and Andromeda went limp. _

Andromeda gasped and sat up, clutching her throbbing stomach tightly, reassuring herself that she was intact. She'd forgotten to take her potion before going to sleep. The events of the day rushed back to her all at once, and she sobbed, rocking back and forth. How could she have been so  _ careless, _ kissing Ted in front of the entire school?

Andromeda realized suddenly that no one was sitting beside her bed, hovering over her. She forced herself to stop sobbing, and peered around the room. It must have been nighttime, as all the rest of the girls were asleep. Galea was slumped on the ground next to Andromeda, no doubt tasked with keeping her from breaking out.

_ Nice try. _ Andromeda thought savagely, stepping over her and out the dormitory. She crept down the hall, trying to discern if anyone was in the common room. She didn't hear anyone, so she moved forward, keeping her steps light.

"Andromeda?" Andromeda froze as the familiar voice rang out in the deserted common room.

"Janus, please let me go." she whispered, pulling out her wand. "I don't want to jinx you, but I will."

Instead of stopping her, he spoke, his voice low and hesitant. "There's a girl back home. She comes from a good family, and I really like her. But my parents won't let me be with her. They hardly even let me talk to her." he looked up at her, his eyes searching her face.

"Why?" Andromeda asked.

"She's a squib." He said. Andromeda blinked.

"I see." she said.

"So..." Janus continued. "I just want to say. Thank you." After a moment, he said, "You can go, I won't tell."

"Janus..." Andromeda knew she didn't really have time to spare. Someone could come down the stairs at any moment. "If you truly like her... don't let your parents dictate your life."

Andromeda turned, giving him a nod that spoke volumes before turning and carefully pushing the door open. She realized, when she had left the common room, she had no idea where she was going. A memory echoed up through her mind, the night of the meteor shower. The Hufflepuff dorm was in the basement. 

Andromeda stumbled through the halls, shivering a little as a wave of despair and regret crashed over her. She started to feel her breathing hasten, her chest constricting like she was in the grip of the tree branches once again. She only stumbled faster, knowing that if she could just get to Ted, everything would be fine.

She arrived at the stairs and she scrambled down them, wiping tears from her eyes. She tried to make out a door in the low light, but all she could see were portraits along the walls, and a stack of barrels in the corner.

Andromeda kicked a barrel in frustration, her fists curling at her side. She slammed her fist down onto the barrel angrily, feeling like the entire world was slipping from her grasp, like everything she had was no longer in her control.

Suddenly, the barrel swung open, and an annoyed Hufflepuff stuck their head out. "What are you doing, banging about—" they cut off when he saw her face, no doubt recognizing her.

"Please." she whispered. "I need to see him. Please, where's Ted?"

The Hufflepuff's face hardened and their mouth opened, no doubt to tell her off, when a low voice called from behind them. "Maria, who is it?"

Maria scowled and Andromeda felt her heartbeat pick up. "That's him." she said. "Please, let me just talk to him once." Her voice grew louder, becoming slightly panicked.

"'Dromeda? Is that you?" the voice grew stronger, like he was walking towards her.

"Ted!" she practically yelled. "Can—can we talk?"

"Maria, let her in." Ted said. Maria sighed and moved aside, making room for Andromeda to step forward, into the Hufflepuff common room. She walked forward a few steps, making her way through a low, sloping tunnel until she stood face to face with Ted. She saw his eyes were puffy and red, no doubt matching hers. As soon as they locked eyes, her tears came back in full force.

She collapsed into him, burying her face in his chest. "I'm sorry." she hiccuped. "I'm so stupid, I shouldn't—"

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh." he said in a low voice, rubbing her back.

"I had a nightmare." she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"A nightmare?" His grip on her loosened a little.

"And Bella slapped me, and they wouldn't let me leave the dorms—"

_ “Slapped _ you?" He pulled away, holding her at arm's length and examining the redon her cheek. "What?" Andromeda was struck with how angry he looked. 

Ted didn't get angry. 

She pulled herself back into him, trying to stop shaking. He led her to a sofa, sitting her down next to him. Andromeda was still crying uncontrollably, her only anchor his familiar warmth. Finally, her tears stopped flowing, and her breathing slowed to a normal pace. She pushed herself up a little and looked into his eyes.

"I'm sorry." she said again, her voice hoarse and dry. 

"Tell me what happened." he implored.

Andromeda nodded, stuttering her way through the story, her voice hitching when she told him about Bellatrix hitting her. He didn't show any impatience, even as she took frequent breaks to get her breathing under control.

"You can't go back there." he decided. "You can stay here." his eyes flicked up, and Andromeda turned, realizing there were several other Hufflepuffs in the common room with expressions ranging from uncomfortable to horrified. None of them objected, but Andromeda shook her head.

"I can't." she said. "They might come here, and hurt you again. My potion is in my dorm, I can't last long without sleeping. I... I have to go back."

"'Dromeda, you can't." Ted attempted, his voice even. "Stay."

"Ted, listen." she stood up, pulling him with her. "I have to go and face them eventually. Please. Just stay in here, and don't go near any Slytherins. I... I love you." She used his shock as an opportunity to lean forward, peck him on the cheek, and slip away.

As she was walking down the corridor, the sun started to rise, and Andromeda realized that it had been less than twenty four hours ago when she was getting up, preparing for a quidditch game.

So much had happened since then.

An owl swooped toward her, and Andromeda's heart dropped. It was her family owl. Slowly, she undid the letter and ripped it open. 

_ Andromeda, _

_ Bellatrix has written to me and explained the event that occured. I can only say that I am deeply disappointed in you and the people you associate yourself with. Your father and I are considering pulling you out of Hogwarts so you can be cleansed of these inappropriate influences. I have no doubt that your correspondence with your cousin Sirius has contributed greatly to your indiscretions. Do not speak with this mudblood boy again. _

_ Signed,  _

_ Druella Black. _

Andromeda stared down at the letter.  _ Your father and I are considering pulling you out of Hogwarts so you can be cleansed of these inappropriate influences. _ She shuddered, promising herself that no matter how hard they tried, she would not be  _ cleansed. _

Almost as soon as she'd read the letter, another owl came to her. Her mood lifted slightly when she saw that it was the owl belonging to her aunt and uncle. The letter from Sirius was scribbled out hastily and even harder than usual to decipher.

_ Dear Andy, _

_ Mother and father say that I'm no longer allowed to write to you, but I don't care what they say. They said you did something bad, but they wouldn't tell me what it is. What is it? I hope you said something bad about Slytherin. I said something bad about Slytherin, and Reg kicked me in the leg. _

_ Love, Sirius. _

Andromeda smiled, tucking the two letters into her pocket. The one from her mother seemed to weigh heavily there, dragging her down.

Nonetheless, she strode into the Slytherin common room with her head held high, meeting everyone's hateful glares. She spotted Janus in the corner, very deliberately not looking at her. Luckily, Bellatrix wasn't in the common room, so no one stopped her from making her way to her dormitory. By now, everyone else had woken up, and they all stared at her with similar resentment on their faces.

"Where have you been?" Galea demanded. Andromeda ignored her, finally changing out of her quidditch robes, releasing her hair from the braid and splashing some water on her face. By the time she was done, she felt much more refreshed, though try as she might, she couldn't completely get rid of the red around her eyes or the slight tremble in her hands.

"Andromeda." Galea said again, her voice hard. "Where did you go?" Andromeda ignored her again, walking out of the dorm.

Andromeda realized she was ravenous and that she hadn't eaten in nearly a day, so she made her way to the Great Hall, dreading the attention she was no doubt about to receive. As soon as she walked in, she heard the Great Hall go still and silent, then the noise level rose once again, people gossiping shamelessly. She saw, to her relief, that Ted wasn't at the Hufflepuff table. Hopefully his housemates would make sure he stayed hidden away. 

She took an isolated seat at the Slytherin table, devouring a hearty breakfast of everything she could get her hands on.  _ Being devastated is hungry work _ . she thought dryly, inhaling a glass of pumpkin juice.

"Get away from our table." Andromeda looked up, swallowing. A fourth year girl was hovering over her, several other students standing behind her. Andromeda recognized her, but the girl's name evaded her.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You don't deserve to sit at the noble house of Slytherin." Andromeda felt a stab of sympathy for her. She was just spouting something her parents had drilled into her head from birth, something she genuinely thought was true.

Knowing that saying that would only make the situation worse, Andromeda swallowed once more and stood up."If you insist." she said graciously, swiping one last piece of toast before walking away calmly.

She could tell the girl had expected for her to put up some sort of a fight, because she blanched for a moment. She gathered her wits enough to shout at Andromeda's receding back. "And stay away, you traitor!" 

Andromeda simply ignored her. As soon as she'd left the Great Hall, she heard the patter of footsteps jogging behind her. She turned and saw Kingsley and Hestia running towards her, both of them scowling. Andromeda's heart skipped a beat. In the chaos of the last day, she'd completely forgotten the promise they'd made her.

As soon as they were standing in front of her, Hestia hissed at her, her eyes fiery with rage, "What were you  _ thinking?” _ Her eyes were shining with tears, and her fists clenched at her sides as she spoke. 

"You'd better fix this, or we'll make your life hell." Kingsley threatened, raising a finger. "He's hurt, and it's your fault." 

Every word ripped deep into Andromeda's heart, creating a new cut. She knew that it was all true, and she dropped her gaze, unable to meet their eyes. "I know." she rasped. "But—I... I don't know how..."

"We don't care if you don't know how, you'd better fix it." Hestia snapped. "Your  _ sister _ almost killed him. If the others hadn't been there..." The venom faded from her voice and genuine fear filled her eyes. "You'd better fix it."

Andromeda opened her mouth once more, trying to explain, trying to make them understand, but before she could, Professor Sinestra appeared around the corner, tapping her wand in her hand. "Ah, Miss Black." she greeted, her eyes filled with pity. "The headmaster is asking to see you."

Andromeda turned away from Hestia and Kingsley wordlessly. She'd never been called to the headmasters office before, but she'd also never started a brawl or won the house cup, so the day was full of firsts for her.

Professor Sinestra said nothing as she escorted Andromeda through the empty hallways, her shoes clicking against the stone, though she did watch Andromeda with a sorrowful look. Andromeda's stomach twisted as she wondered what awaited her in the headmasters office.

As they pushed open the large door, Andromeda felt all of the hope whoosh out of her as she took in the scene in front of her.

Standing in the center of the office, backs perfectly straight, and faces masks of cold indifference, were Druella and Cygnus Black.


	13. What

_ Pure. _

  
  
  


_ Dirty. _

  
  
  
  


_ Clean. _

  
  
  
  


_ Filthy. _

  
  
  
  


_ Right. _

  
  
  
  


_ Wrong. _

  
  
  
  


"Andromeda, are you excited to go back to school?"

"Yes, mother. I am looking forward to seeing my Slytherin friends."

"It is unfortunate that you had to drop your Divination class."

"Yes, mother."

"What do you think about the new muggle-loving headmaster, Andromeda?"

"I think that it is despicable that he would allow such impure blood into the prestigious establishment of Hogwarts. I am thankful that Slytherin does not allow muggles in."

"Good. Go pack your things."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Read book two to find out what happens in Andromeda’s seventh year!


End file.
